Naruto and The Water Princess
by Ten Commandments
Summary: Naruto grows up to become a powerful ninja with the help of a mentor with ten swords and a beautiful fiance. But he will soon discover that his life has been marked long before he was born. Lemons on chapter 37-38 and 42. Remember to check for signs to skip. Naru/Mei/Samui/Saku/Hina, Sasu/Ino/Ten, Haku/Anko/Karui
1. The 10 Swords Inheritance

_**Chapter 1: The Inheritance of the Ten Swords!**_

One day in Konohagakure, the village hidden within the leaves, on Children's Day, a spiky haired blond kid runs throughout the streets of the village towards the forest area. On his face, three whiskers on each side and blue eyes, on his body, a miniature green and orange jumpsuit. In his hands are two slips of paper.

This is Naruto Uzumaki, but you probably knew that. You also might know that he's a human sacrifice, a human jail-cell for an evil and bored as hell Biju inside his stomach. Before he was born, actually on the day he was there was this giant orange fox with nine tails that attacked his home village. Everyone who tried to even approach it got their asses handed to them, except for one person; the Yondaime Hokage of the village, the man who gave his life to seal the creature inside of the boy.

Anyway, you get the idea. We're 7 years ahead of then, and now focused on why he's running into the forest. You see, a few minutes ago he received two letters from the current village champion, Hiruzen Sarutobi the Sandaime Hokage, which were written by his two parents and passed onto him by the time he is old enough to go to the Ninja Academy. Let's see what they say:

_Dear Naruto,_

_Hello Naruto, this is your old man Minato Namikaze. If you're reading this then I am no longer with you, and I love you very much. It also means that I am leaving behind a very powerful burden on your shoulders. I'm sorry for this, but I had no choice; there was trouble brewing, and I needed to do something about it. The Nine Tailed Demon Fox has attacked Konoha, and I was kind of overwhelmed. Without the power to suppress demons like the first Hokage, I had to make a huge sacrifice. I had to seal it inside of you, well half of its energy anyway. I believed you could use it for the right reasons, because you're my son._

_Well, that was part of the reason; I also realized something. I tried to reason with the fox at first before taking drastic measures and attacking it, but at that moment I noticed someone was controlling it, a powerful shinobi. Without some sort of special power I figured no one would be able to stop it; that's why I sealed it inside of a baby, who could grow up to use the chakra and not become overwhelmed by its power and die, and not inside of myself and taking it with me. Even when I stop the Kyubi, he'll just make another attack._

_And as I write this letter, I ask you to please take this to my home estate. It exists somewhere in the forests of Konoha. Of course only those with my blood, Kushina's, and that other guy, can see it. You will find that guy inside, I hope. Hiruzen should know about him._

_And once again, I'm sorry. It's going to be a tough time for you._

_Love, Minato Namikaze_

And the other one says,

_Dear Naruto,_

_Hello, my sweet little child. This is your mother, Kushina Uzumaki. If you are reading this message, then your idiot father went and sealed the fox inside of you. It also means that I am dead as well: stupid tuberculosis. Anyway, I better make this quick…I don't have much time left before I have to go to the hospital. I am your mother, Kushina Uzumaki. I am one of the few surviving members of the land of whirlpool, but sadly one of their weaker members due to this illness of mine. I write this message in hopes that you survive for all of us, and punish the man who sent that fox after us._

_If you read the other letter Minato provided then please take this to our home estate. There you will meet a teenager named Yuuki D. Manabu. He will instruct you and protect you for as long as he can. Being a friend of the family who values the bonds of others he won't take no for an answer. Also…there's also this agreement we had with Kirigakure; relations there became tough for us, so the Yondaime Mizukage made a deal with Minato concerning you._

_Since you and I are the last of the Whirlpool ninjas you will have to enact the Clan Revival Act. Luckily the Mizukage didn't know so he agreed to allowing his future successor marry you in the future. I'm just glad he doesn't know about your bloodline, or he'd kill off your kids. So when you meet a red headed girl, who would be more than twice your age by the time you see her, you'll know._

_So I better wrap this up. I think my water just broke…goodbye son. I love you._

_Love, Kushina Uzumaki_

And so we come to here, a dead end near the edge of the forest. There Naruto could make out the image of a mansion hiding admits the trees. As he enters through the gates he notices a security camera trailing him. But other than that nothing happened. Naruto then enters inside the building, and sees the beauty of the building inside.

As he steps onto the marble floor he notices someone in the living room in a meditation stance, but standing. This guy has black spiky hair that almost resembles a crab, but it has yellow stripes on the top parts. Some of his hair drapes over his forehead, similar to a palm tree. He has a sort of tan skin tone and is wearing a dark blue kosode with a matching hakama. On his feet are wooden sandals. He also has blue eyes. On his left hip rests a sheathed katana and on his back a white-silver excalibur sword. He seems to be looking right at Naruto, but he still hasn't moved an inch.

"Uh, hello? Are you okay?" Naruto asks the guy. But still, no reaction came out of him. Naruto then gains a mischievous glint in his eyes and smirks. He grabs hold of the man's katana and pulls it free. He then flips the sword to its dull side and prepares to whack him on the head with it.

Before he could register it to his sensors Naruto is kicked in the face by the man's left foot, the one he had up in the air. The blond lands flat on his butt while cupping his cheek, the sword he took dropping out of his hands. The man comes out of his stance and says, "I apologize; I don't like to be disturbed while meditating. Naruto Uzumaki?"

"Uh, yeah. Are you Manabu Yuuki?" Naruto asks the man.

"Yes. If you're here then you must have gotten the message." He says to the boy. Naruto digs into his pocket and hands him the letters.

Manabu takes them and reads each one. "Well if you've received them then you must be ready for the academy."

"So then are you going to teach me some powerful jutsus!" Naruto asks him in an excited voice.

"No."

"Show me how to use my bloodline?"

"I wouldn't know how to."

"Then what good are you?" Naruto gives up guessing and turns around to walk away. But as he does he sees the adult before him with the katana he dropped earlier.

"In all honesty I cannot use magic, or jutsus as you call it." He explains, sheathing the katana in its sheath.

"If that's true then how…never mind. But then how can you help me with my training? You're just as human as me." The little kid questions. How could his parents ask him to help with his training if he isn't a ninja?

"That's true...I can't perform jutsu. I can't even mold chakra, but I can still make up for it with physical training. Still, I would have died years ago if it weren't for the Starlight Rave." He says to the kid.

"Starlight Rave?" – Naruto

"This here," He grabs hold of the sword on his back and draws it, showing him the beautifully silver sword. "It is the tenth form of the Twilight Star."

"Huh?" Naruto seems confused at this moment.

"Here." He hands Naruto the katana on his waist to him, who falls down after catching it. "That is the sealed form of the Twilight Star, a sword that can transform into ten different forms. This is one of the reasons I'm as strong as I am.

"It's something only those with a good heart and a courage that burns as bright as the event horizon." The swordsman says as he holds his sword up. "Your first test is to see if you can awaken the first sword."

"Uh, okay…but how will I know how to use it?" Naruto asks him, pulling the sword free from its scabbard.

"You'll just know. That's the power of the Twilight Star, allowing those it chooses to open them up." Manabu says to Naruto.

The young Uzumaki lifts the sword up, and swings down. When he does the sword glows, and unintentionally releases crystal spears at Manabu. He turns his body to the side to dodge each one.

"Whoa…" Naruto looks down at his sword, and notices how much it has changed; it has become a light blue colored blade with a tetragon-shaped hole as its guard. The handle hasn't changed at all. "What's this?"

"That's the first sword, the Crystal Sword Chromedread. It has the power to control and summon diamonds. But sound based weaponry can shatter the blade to pieces." Manabu explains, having his sword transform into Chromedread as well.

"I guess I can use it…OH BOY! This is going to be great! With this I'll become the best ninja in the world!" Naruto shouts, hopping up and down out of glee.

'Well at least he isn't emo.' Manabu comments, a light sigh releasing from his lips.

As Naruto continues bouncing around, he pauses when he realizes something. "So, who's going to help me with my bloodline?"

Manabu pauses for a while, and then answers, "I think someone can help you train it to become stronger, but I can't promise he might come…"

"Huh?"

"Anyway, I can't help you make your bloodline stronger, but I do know something about it." Manabu begins, leaning his head back up to the ceiling. "It's called Hadouryu. It allows you to turn chakra, or the mental and physical energy used to make it into a certain element. It's much more stronger than normal chakra turned into an element through jutsu or conversion."

"Wow. So I could make fire without using those complicated handsigns?" – Naruto

"Yeah, if your element is fire. It's rather risky to use at first, because you'd have to be completely exposed to that element in order to use it, and without the knowledge of what it could be you could end up killing yourself." Manabu warns him.

"...Huh..."

The Next Morning

"Mizukage-sama, we have received a message from Konoha via carrier pigeon." Chojuro, a member of the seven ninja swordsmen of the mist and bodyguard of the Mizukage, holds a bird in his hand as he approaches a woman sitting by a large desk.

This beautiful young looking woman has long red hair, which hangs, down to her ankles, covering her right eye, and piercing green eyes that can hypnotize a person. She also has a deep blue garment over a webbed-mesh bodysuit. She also has blue lipsticks on.

"What does it say?" She asks, looking at her young bodyguard.

"Well," Chojuro takes the letter and unravels it. "The time of waiting has ended. The son of Yondaime Hokage has now become aware of his heritage and has finally started his training in becoming a ninja."

"He has? Does it give a name?" Chojuro shakes his head, which would represent no to others.

"But it does say who it is from; one Manabu D. Yuuki." At that name the Mizukage's eyebrows lift up with interest.

"Is that so? Then please, make a reply asking to send progress reports." She orders, her eyebrows returning to normal. She also gives out a smile.

"Y-Yes ma'am!" He says, blushing at her actions. 'She's so pretty…'

'Five more years until I can visit him…I hate waiting…' She says in her mind, continuing with her paperwork. 'More than this stupid paperwork! I wish I could melt this problem away like all my other suitors!'

She then slams her hands down on the desk, grabbing Chojuro's attention. "Enough of this…I'm going anyway!"

"WHAT?"

The Next Day During The Evening...

"Naruto, do you hate or blame your parents for your loneliness and sadness?" - Manabu

"Well, I can't really say I hate them. I was the only one who could retain it at the time. Besides, I can deal with it; I'm the Fourth's son, right?" Naruto states to his mentor. He has been practicing his katas all day after coming back from the ninja academy.

"That was rather mature of you. I guess you really are his son." Manabu says, trying to cook a good meal for them. Unfortunately he was failing miserably. 'This was so much easier when Yusei was around! He was a much better chef than I could be…'

"Where do you come from? I find it kind of weird a person with your strength isn't a real ninja." Naruto asks the adult.

"I am a ninja… I use to live outside of the Shinobi Continents. After fulfilling a goal of mine I decided to move here, and met your old man shortly after when I wandered into Iwa during that war. If it wasn't for him I wouldn't have survived." Manabu explains, before noticing the food he was cooking has started to catch on fire. 'Ah damn it!'

"What was your goal…and what's smell?" Naruto then notices the smoke from the burning meal.

"Nothing! My goal was to prove my family's innocence." He says before grabbing the fire extinguisher. He then puts out the fire quickly, before sighing in depression. "Ya know what, let's go out to eat."

"Yeah! Let's go to Ichiraku Ramen!" He yells in excitement. Manabu face palms his head knowing how hyperactive he becomes involving ramen.

And so the two exit the Namikaze mansion and head for his building. Manabu draws his Twilight Star and transforms it, morphing the weapon into a darker form. He grabs Naruto and they rush for town, to substitute Manabu's terrible cooking for someone else's.

By the time they reach the stand he releases the little ninja and prepares to enter. Both of them sit side by side and make their orders, Ayame the counter girl appearing before them with two menu packets. "Good evening you two. What will you have today?"

"I want Miso!" Naruto says, a smile adorning his face.

"Okay." Ayame says, writing down his order on a napkin. "And what will your friend have?"

"Do you have any tempura?" He asks, causing Ayame to frown and gain a questioning look on her face. "Never mind, I'll just have chachamen."

They both receive their orders and chow down. Afterwards they place their bowls in front of them, and receive the bill. Manabu reaches inside his pockets, and pales as he realizes something. Naruto looks up at him and asks, "Something wrong?"

"I forgot my wallet." Naruto gasps in shock when he hears that.

"WHAT!" – Naruto

"Wait here! I'll go get it!" He says, preparing to go back home and retrieve his currency.

"I can pay for it." Someone says to them.

"Oh thanks for-" Naruto is about to say, but pauses when he notices the person who said it. Manabu stops for a moment to see who it was too, and his eyes open up when he notices who it is. "-the…help…?"

Standing before them is the Mizukage of Kirigakure, who has two bodyguards positioned behind her. All around them people gaze at the woman's beauty, men and women alike. In fact, the only ones who didn't have hearts for eyes, blood coming out their noses, and were completely out of character are Manabu, who was only a little surprised at her appearance, and Naruto, who was stuck at blushing.

The Mizukage walks over to the spiky haired adult. "Are you Manabu D. Yuuki, the one who relayed the message to me?"

"Uh, yes. He's right here." Mana says, gesturing towards the blond kid beside him. 'I wasn't expecting her until he graduated.'

"Who…who are you?" Naruto asks, still blushing as she approaches him, leaning down on her right knee to reach his level without hurting her back. Ayame has fallen in love with the woman's appearance as well, so much so she didn't see the yen she placed on the counter.

"I am Mei Terumi. I have come looking for you. I am…" She then leans forward and whispers in his left ear something very quiet. She comes face to face with him again and regains her smile.

"What's that?" He asks her, to which she smiles more and brushes his hair.

"Such innocence…you'll find out someday soon." – Mei

"Alright, everyone break it up! Give us a path!" The unnamed bodyguard says to the civilians in their way. Mei stands back up and takes hold of Naruto's right hand, pulling him towards the Hokage Tower.

"Oi, wait!" Manabu says, grabbing the katana Naruto left behind to follow them.

"Mizukage-dono, to what do I owe the pleasure?" The Sandaime says to the only other female member of the Gokage. She, her bodyguards, Naruto who is now in her arms, and Manabu who is waiting by the door, are now before the Hokage in his office.

"I am only here to visit my little fiancé here. Surely Yondaime or Kushina told you about that right?" Mei says to him.

"Fiancé?" Chojuro repeats in shock. 'But, she's way too old for him; he hasn't even gone through puberty! Is she a cradle robber?'

"I was told that. But isn't little Naruto too young to meet with the woman he is to wed soon?" Sarutobi states.

"What's a fiancé?" Naruto asks once again.

"I'll tell you when you're older." Manabu says to the blond kid.

"Why not now?" He shouts.

"Now, now Naruto, use your indoor voice." She says to him, instantly quieting him.

"No, I knew of the wedding when Naruto told me what he read in the letter. But isn't it a little early? Unless you're in to that type of stuff?" The Hokage says, bringing an anger mark to her face. But despite that she continues to smile.

"I also have to ask; aren't you a little too old to be marrying a kid who was born while you went through puberty?" Manabu asks, a little curious as to what is going on. It would make more sense for them to set him up with someone else at least a few years older than him.

Mei shifts her head to the left, and glares at Manabu. She closes her eyes and widens her smile. It is at this moment that everyone else could feel death, except Naruto who was too innocent to feel it. She then says in a clear voice, "Age means nothing to a shinobi. If one is old enough to kill a person then they are old enough to drink, marry and sleep around…like how you'll be dead this very second if you mention a woman's age again. Are we clear?"

Her short speech brought fear into Manabu. He has fought against all forms of shinobi, some Biju, and even the monster that caused him suffering, but this woman scares him more than anything. It's always the nice ones (cue Unohana Retsu). "Y-Y-Yes Ma'am…S-Sorry…"

"Good." Mei says, before turning around and sighing. But as she does she releases a purple-like mist from her lips, and everyone except Naruto, who didn't know the nature of her breath, and Manabu who was out of the way held their mouths closed.

"Mizukage-dono, watch your mouth! We don't need to deal with your acidic breath!" The Hokage says to her, backing away to avoid the mist.

"My apologies, Hokage-dono!" She quickly says, the mist going away. Naruto remains unaffected of her power, and unaware of the situation. "But is there some way I can help him become stronger? If he truly is a Jinchuuriki then he'll need as much protection as possible."

"Yes, that is true, but that is why we have Manabu here. Not only is he a friend of Minato, but he also is rather strong in his own way." Sarutobi states.

"Un. Naruto already has control over one of the ten swords in the Twilight Star. He should be fine by the time he graduates." Manabu says, walking up to Mei's side while holding up the Original Twilight Star. (Naruto's)

"Even so, I would like to grant him some sort of protection. Chojuro, hand over the scroll." Mei says to her bodyguard, who presents the Hokage a medium sized scroll. "This here is a summoning scroll of the Yamata. It will allow him to summon animals of the reptilian variety; it ranges from geckos and gators to cobras and finally the hydra."

"I see. Well I can allow him to sign up to the contract, but first he has to pass the academy. We have to make sure Naruto becomes a well accomplished ninja, or at Manabu's level." – Sarutobi

"Oi!" – Manabu

"I understand." Mei says, hugging Naruto even more. The boy blushes even more as he daydreams in her arms.

"So I'll see you again in five years, Terumi-san?" Naruto asks the Mizukage. Him and Manabu stand in front of his home gate while she and her bodyguards wait in front of them.

"Of course Naruto. And please, call me Mei." She tells him, placing a kiss on his forehead. A blushing Naruto nods and smiles, not noticing the jealousy beam coming at him from Chojuro. She looks up at Manabu, her smile still present, and says, "I leave him in your hands Manabu. Take care of him, or wash your neck."

"Don't worry. I'll take good care of him." Manabu says, a little sweat coming down from hearing that last threat.

"Good. Alright, let's head back." Mei says to her bodyguards, and they all disappear in a flash.

Manabu takes Naruto and heads inside their home. "She's really nice, you know. Maybe I can get use to being with her."

"You think that…" He mumbles, looking at the boy down beside him.

Elsewhere…

"You really sure you want to marry that kid?" Chojuro asks the Mizukage, while dashing across trees with the other two. They were already a mile away from Konoha and traveling for Kiri.

Of course I do. I promised Minato, also…he's impeccably cute." She says, a blush appearing on her face.

"Stop right there!" A voice shouts out. Suddenly several ninjas appear and surround them.

The two bodyguards grab their swords and prepare to cut them down. But Mei steps in front of them, saying, "No, I'll handle them. They're nothing but rouge bandits passing for ninjas."

"Don't look down on us like we're petty thieves, you old bitch!" One of them says, bringing a twitch to the Mizukage.

"Old…lady…" She mutters, as a sort of ooze leaks out from her pores.

"Uh oh! Let's get back!" The other bodyguard says, and him and Chojuro hide behind a tree to avoid her.

"And what are you gonna do about it?" Another one questions her, taking out a kunai. More of the offensive smelling liquid expels from her body. It comes to the point where some rise up from her body, taking the form of a large, cartoonish, acidic snake. Two more rise up from her body.


	2. Teacher Poison

Disclaimer: I do not own this franchise or the challenge.

Omake-

"Oh wow, this is so good!" Naruto says in a moan. He looks down at Karui, who was giving him one hell of a fellatio. He could enjoy it to the fullest if she hadn't tied him up.

"Oh yeah, you like this huh? You love having your penis touch the back of my head right?" She speaks in a lustful voice, continuing her assault on his penis. She is only doing this in the first place to get information out of him, since he wouldn't tell him anything about Sasuke. Information getting out of men is the best thing kunoichi can do.

"Oh god! I'm about to cum!" He says in a shouting tone. Just when she feels he is about to cum, she releases his penis and stands up before him. "Huh?"

"Enough of that." – Karui

"NANI?" Naruto shouts, mad that she didn't finish with the blowjob.

"I can't have you cum until you give me what I want." Karui says to him. This is basic strategy; now that he has reached the verge of climaxing, he'll be desperate for release and will succumb to her will. "Now, will you tell me what you know about Sasuke?"

"No! I told you I wouldn't sell him out!" He says right back at her. This pisses Karui off even more, but she holds in her anger.

"Are you sure? I can continue the fellatio, or would you like to cum in a more comfortable area?" She questions him. She then turns herself around and sticks her ass out to him, hoping to goad him in further. "If you give in I can let you cum inside my pussy."

"Kuso…" Naruto curses. Karui could see the desperate look in his eyes, and was glad he was beginning to cave in. In total honesty, she wants him inside her so much, regardless of whether he tells her about Sasuke or not. A clear sign of this can be the juices leaking down her legs. But her mission comes first, which is why she held back, no matter how much she wants him.

"What are you two doing?" Samui asks them, appearing face to face before Karui. This shocks and surprises both ninjas, causing them to blush out of embarrassment.

"Samui-san! I was just, uh, getting information out of this kid! He knows something about Sasuke!" Karui explains to her superior.

"I am not a kid!" Naruto defends, wishing his hands were free so he could use his hands.

"First off, you don't use a fellatio to make them desperate; only amateurs do that." She explains, before walking over to him.

"Hey! Go away!" Naruto yells at her.

"You have to give him a taste of your vagina, a thousand times over. No matter how much stamina a person has they'll want to stop having sex soon. So you have to make him want to stop…at least, when you have to toy with a dick like this…" Samui then pulls down her pants and pushes Naruto to the ground, his hands pulled up on the shed it's tied to. She then sits down on his erection, having it enter her system. As it does she moans in pleasure as it reaches her womb. "Especially when you have a dick like this!"

"Samui-san!" Karui blushes as she watches them go at it. 'How could she do that! I was going to rape him first!'

'I would have preferred she beat the crap out of me!' Naruto whines in his head.

_**Chapter 2: Teacher Poison**_

5-Year Time Skip Jutsu!

"Enjoy your graduation Naruto." Manabu says to the spiky haired blond heading to the ninja academy. Five years have past since they met the melting water shadow of Kiri, Mei. During that time Naruto and Manabu got to learn a bunch about her, from reports she send to them. Mei also learned a lot of her future fiancé as well, who was beginning to become much more comfortable with her.

Of course besides that Naruto was also able to unlock three more of the ten swords inside the Twilight Star, and his kenjutsu has grown to chunin level. He also made a friend in Haruno Sakura, a member of his class. Other than that things have been pretty slow for him, having to struggle to learn two of the three main academy level jutsu. He can't even do the last one without failing miserably.

But he got through that loophole thanks to Mizuki. When he failed to make a functional clone the guy tricked Naruto into stealing the forbidden scroll of Konoha, and performing a jutsu inside of it. Since there were so many he practiced the Shadow Clone one. But like in the main storyline Mizuki wanted to steal the scroll from him after killing off the boy. He was close to doing that too, before Iruka and Manabu took him out. Afterwards Naruto made a Shadow Clone for his teacher Iruka to see, and received his Hitai-e for his trouble.

At this moment now he and his classmates are waiting inside the academy for Iruka to call on teams. Soon Naruto's name is called for Team 7, prompting him to wait impatiently for who could be working alongside him.

"Sakura Haruno…" Naruto smiles as he hears his only other female friend has been chosen. But then the name, 'Sasuke Uchiha' came up, causing Sakura to cheer, and Naruto to frown back into his seat.

You see, him and Naruto haven't been on good terms, not since the first time they met. Naruto had a couple of nuts stashed away in his pockets, hoping to get a good meal since Manabu's cooking hadn't improved. But then squirrels got into his pants and drove him crazy. Sasuke, being the only one around at the time had to pull his pants down to get them out. But with the entire class watching them, you can imagine what the fan girls would say about it.

Because of that incident, Sasuke continues to blame Naruto for what happened to him, since all the kids in town are now calling him a homosexual predator; things for him only got worse when his clan got wiped out later that day. You can imagine how much he took his pain out on others, including Naruto.

And now he has to work alongside him. Screw that! "Uh, Iruka-sensei, is there any chance I can get assigned to another person?"

"No. We pair these teams up to balance people's scores out. Like in your team's case we had to place the weakest score with the best scores." Iruka explains to Naruto.

"Are you saying my grades were less than anyone else's in class?" Naruto shouts in anger.

"Why yes. Yes I am." Iruka replies, causing most of class to laugh at his faults. "Anyway, next team is Hinata Hyuga-"

As he finishes with the rest of the teams, Naruto plops his head down on his desk. 'This day can't get any worse.'

After Iruka finishes telling teams, everyone went out to lunch. They would return later to meet their new teacher. Naruto sits by a tree and unpacks his meal, but gasps when he sees that there is a hole in the bottom. "HUH?"

He looks to the side to see a group of squirrels eating what appears to be his lunch. "I hate those damn things!"

"What's wrong? Got more squirrels in your pants?" Kiba taunts the spiky haired boy.

"Shut up dog boy!" Naruto shouts, standing back up to confronts him. "Go pee on a tree or something."

"I don't do that…anymore! One time the stalls were full and I couldn't hold it in!" Kiba says to Naruto. Both of them are totally unaware of the female hiding and staring at Naruto.

"Yeah, whatever…I'm a little hungry-" Naruto pauses when a purple and pinkish blur goes past him and Kiba, and leaves a box in front of him. "-Though…"

"Where did that come from?" Kiba asks in shock. He looks around for where it could have come from, but nothing catches his eye.

Naruto opens the box, and smiles as he sees a beautifully placed bento lunch inside. "WOW! It's actually shining!"

"Can I have that? After all you don't know where it's from." Kiba says, drooling over his food.

"No way! Who would go through all that trouble?" Naruto says, taking his meal away from Kiba to eat it in privacy. As he does eat it the person who gave it to him smiles with a light blush, glad he likes her hard made meal. "This is delicious!"

"Naruto!" Sakura calls out, approaching the orange loving kid with a smile on her face. As she reaches them Kiba walks away, still hoping to eat his meal.

"Oh, Sakura!" Naruto says, a small amount of flush appearing on his face. "Glad about the team placements?"

"Of course! I couldn't have asked for anything more!" She says, a blush appearing on her face. Naruto could clearly see this, and he can only assume that it was for him. "So, I was wondering…could you…I mean... Can you do me something?"

"Um, sure. Anything." He says, knowing what to expect from her.

"Can you help me get along with Sasuke? I'm hoping to make him my boyfriend!" At that Naruto falls to the ground; guess he wasn't expecting that.

Two hours have passed since lunchtime ended, and yet the only ones still waiting are Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura. The blond has fallen asleep, the cherry blossom is busy writing on a notepad, and the emo is trying his best to stay awake.

Their attention snaps forward when someone enters the room, but they all crash to the ground when they see it is only the janitor. Then, right after the janitor, comes a man with silver perm hair and a jonin outfit.

"I guess you three are my students." HE says to them, prompting anger and rage to rise up.

"WHERE WERE YOU ALL DAY?" Sakura screams, waking Naruto up from his nap.

"Armageddon! Huh?" Naruto spouts when he woke up.

"Well, let's get this over with. We can begin by telling each other a little about ourselves." The man says, sitting up on the desk beside Naruto.

"Shouldn't we go outside or something?" Naruto asks, wanting a little bit a fresh air after being cooped up in this room for two hours.

"I'll begin." He says, completely ignoring Naruto. "My name is Kakashi Hatake. I…like many things. I dislike allot of things as well. I have many hobbies, and well, I don't think I have a goal."

"But, you only told us your name-

"You can go next." Kakashi says, interrupting Sakura's well thought out interpretation.

"Well, my name is Sakura Haruno. I like many things…mostly flowers and…" She looks at Sasuke and blushes a little. "I hate that my friend Ino became my most hated enemy so soon. My hobbies include gardening and cooking. My greatest goal in life is to lessen the burdens of those I love anyway I can."

'Well, she's less of a fan girl than I thought…oh well.' Kakashi thinks, looking at Sasuke to pick him next. "Next is emo."

Sasuke grits his teeth in anger when he called him emo. "My name is Sasuke Uchiha. I don't like much. I hate a lot of things. My only current hobby is training, and using cut outside of battles. My goal, is to kill a certain someone…someone I've known for so long…"

'He's still mad about that huh?' Kakashi figures, before his attention turns to Naruto.

'Is he still mad about the squirrels in my pants?" – Naruto

"It's your turn now, sunlight." Kakashi says to the brightly colored ninja.

"Sun…I am Naruto Na-" Just as he was about to say his real last name he makes a loud coughing noise. "Sorry. Anyway, I'm Naruto Uzumaki, and I like all forms of noodles, except soba. I hate being rushed, and waiting. My hobbies include helping others and other stuff. And my life goal, one I've set up ever since I could remember, is to become the village champion!"

"Well aren't you cheerful?" Kakashi says to him, causing the blond to smile.

'It's going to be a long road for him if that's what he wants.' Sakura says in her mind as she looks at her friend.

'Humph. Good luck with that…' – Sasuke

"Alright, I guess you guys are ready for being ninjas. Although I am supposed to give you a test, I don't see it necessary, at least for you three. Already I can tell enough from each and every one of you."

They each stared at him, a bit confused about what he meant by that. "What do you mean sensei?" Asks Sakura of course.

"It means that if I were to give you a test, you would fail it in less than 3 hours." He says, rising up off the desk.

"Well that's not fair! We worked hard in becoming ninjas, at least give us a try!" Naruto speaks to the silver haired guy.

"Well, I suppose I could give you a try. Meet me at Training grounds 7 tomorrow morning at 9." Kakashi tells them before disappearing in a flash.

"Manabu! I'm back from…hello?" Naruto begins as he enters his home, noticing his mentor isn't inside. He enters the living room and finds a note on the couch.

"What's this? 'Naruto, had to accompany someone on a mission. I already paid Ayame for three bowls of ramen. Will return…sometime I'm not sure of.' So he's out huh…" Naruto says as he read the note Manabu left behind. "Well, better go get that ramen! This is going to be a great night!"

Meanwhile, Manabu was having problems Naruto could never imagine; the mission he took involves him escorting a bridge builder to the land of wave. It wasn't that much of a problem, since this was just an escort. The only thing Manabu would deal with are normal thugs and bandits.

"So, is there really anything else I need to know?" Manabu asks the old man he's escorting, Tazuna.

"No, of course not! Why would there be?" He says, a little nervous when he asked him.

"Well, okay. Except, I have a feeling we're being followed." Manabu says, looking down at the water puddle just up ahead. "Like that water puddle. Why would there be one when it hasn't rained for days? Not only that it's summer."

"It is? Now that you mention it…" Just then the puddle slowly rises up from the ground, taking the form of two ninjas. Both have metal claw gauntlets on their opposing arms, attached to one another by a long, razor sharp chain.

"So our cover's blown huh? Let's take the old man out anyway!" The left one says, holding his claws up.

"I agree. He doesn't have a headband, so he much be just some guy he picked up." The other says, as they both charge at them.

Manabu lifts his right foot and kicks the old man away so he wouldn't get hurt. The swordsman then draws Starlight Rave, preparing to take them down. Just as they were about to carve into his flesh, his sword releases dark fumes all around it. He then disappears in a matter of seconds, leaving their field of vision for the moment.

In actuality he leaped over them. They quickly catch onto his movements just as he lands behind them, stabbing his sword in the middle of their chain. Twilight Star transforms into Chromedread and creates diamond spikes to hook into the ground. He then breaks the point off of the sword by pulling it off, and lands a few feet away from them.

"Get him!" They shout before dashing at him. But the diamond hook on their chain pulls them back. Manabu uses this as an opportunity to dash at them, his sword switching to a new form. He slams the sword into the right ninja's stomach, which creates an explosion on impact. This knocks him out effectively.

The other one takes out a kunai and prepares to stab him, but Manabu grabs his arm with his free hand, bringing out his full strength to twist his arm back. The swordsman then shifts his blade into its original form, allowing him to cut him across the left portion of his chest. He falls to the ground in pain, clutching his wound while screaming. "Tazuna, are you okay?"

Yeah, I'll manage." The old man says, pulling himself back together.

"I'll tie these guys up and get some questions out of them. Afterwards you will tell me why they wanted you." He says, turning his attention back to the defeated ninjas.

Two Days Later…

Naruto enters inside the Hokage's office, a sad look on his face. "Ji-ji! Has Manabu returned yet?"

"No, he hasn't as of yet. This mission will last for a while. He won't be able to…" The Hokage sees a bird flying in from the window before landing on his desk. "That must be him."

"It is!" Naruto asks in an excited voice. "What does it say?"

The Hokage removes the scroll, and reads the writing. "It says here…he has run into a little bit of trouble on his escort to Nami and requests a little bit of help."

"Manabu is in trouble? Please, tell me where I can find him!" Naruto asks frantically.

"Naruto, if this is indeed something he cannot deal with, it would be best to send someone strong enough to support him. You're still only a genin, who has only done a single D rank mission ever since graduating." He says to him, to which Naruto frowns in anger. "I'm sorry Naruto, but I cannot send you and your team after him."

"Okay…I understand." Naruto says to him, leaving the room with a sad expression on his face.

Unknown to him, Naruto spent the rest of the night packing some stuff in a backpack. With his stuff packed he then makes his way towards the city gates, with two shadow clones ready to move. He was about to prepare his plan to sneak out, or he would have if he weren't caught. "What are you doing?"

"GAH!" Naruto shouts, looking behind him to see Sasuke and Sakura behind him. "What are you guys doing here?"

"Sakura was following me before we saw you making your way to the exit…well, three of you anyway." Sasuke tells him, approaching him and his two others.

"Naruto, just what are you doing? You can't just leave here without permission!" Sakura says to him, knowing the rules more than both of them.

"I have to go! Manabu may be in trouble!" He says to them, preparing to go through with his plan anyway.

"Who's Manabu?" Sasuke asks him.

"Manabu's my mentor! He's been taking care of me ever since I was seven. I can't just do nothing when I hear he needs help." Naruto explains to his teammates.

"But if he's in trouble can't the Hokage send someone else to-"

"I have to make sure he's okay! I don't care what you guys do!" He says to Sakura, interrupting what she was about to say.

"Naruto…" Sakura could feel the desperation in his voice as he spoke about Manabu. He must really care about him for the guy to risk his entire ninja career for him.

"As long as you're a member of Team 7 your actions affect us as well." Sasuke says to the orange ninja. Both Naruto and Sakura turn to face him; surprised he would say that of all things. They didn't expect him to say the following either: "So if you're going to mess up we're all going to mess up."

"HUH?" – Naruto/Sakura

"Didn't you forget what Kakashi said? Those who leave their friends behind are worse than those who break the rules." States Sasuke.

"Sasuke!" Sakura squeals, noticing how cool he just sounded.

"Wow, thanks. I guess we're cool on that whole squirrel thing, right?" Naruto asks him, nudging his left arm with his right.

"Don't push your luck, dobe." – Sasuke

After another ten minutes of waiting for his friends to pack, Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke prepare to make their move in escaping Konoha. As they approach the village gates, Naruto uses his shadow clones to knock the guards out. And finally, the trio leaves out the village to find Manabu in the Land of Wave.

"So all three of them left the village?" The Hokage questions Kakashi, and three other jonin who have gathered there: Kurenai Yuuhi, Asuma Sarutobi, and Might Guy.

"That's what the guards told us. How could they do something so stupid?" Kurenai says, hitting her face with a palm.

"I can't imagine why Sasuke or Sakura would leave the village, but I can only suspect Naruto left out to assist Manabu Yuuki in Wave." The Hokage answers, knowing how upset he got back there.

"I figured he would do something stupid like that." Kakashi says, before sighing at his students. "So what are your orders?"

"Well, if they left together then they must be going to Nami. And since they are a part of your team, I instruct you, Kakashi, to go after them." The Hokage orders, to which Kakashi lifts his right hand in a salute. "In addition, I want you to find Manabu and see what his problem is. That is all."

"Yes sir." – Kakashi

Later…

"Are you sure you're reading that map right?" Naruto asks Sasuke, whom was the one leading them to Wave. They were constantly jumping from tree to tree to reach the area faster.

"Let's check the compass then." Sakura says while taking out the compass she has while checking the map. As they did they continue to leap across trees, effectively moving enough to dodge anything that could get in their way.

They eventually reach where Manabu battled against the two ninjas from Kiri. Naruto could see a piece of diamond on the ground, which no doubt came from the sword they possess. "He was here… Let's continue." Naruto says, before dashing forward across the road to reach Wave.

"Since when does he get to lead?" Sasuke mumbles before following him down the moon lit road. Sakura sighs as she joins them, looking around to make sure no one was following them.

Manabu opens his eyes slowly to the morning light, having to get use to the brightness it puts on him. Him and Tazuna have stayed within the boat rental building to hide out from their pursuers. Not too long after facing the Demon Brothers Manabu and Tazuna ran into the Demon of the Hidden Mist, and a friend.

Being someone with no ninja talent, no ranking, and no one to back him up, he decided to run with Tazuna. They didn't get off unscathed, as the wounds on Manabu's body and the cut over his eyebrow are proof enough.

"Tazuna, are you okay in there?" Manabu asks him, noticing the old man sleeping in the boat beside him.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I can't believe this idea of yours worked." He says to him, as they both get up from the boat they slept in.

"I'm not so sure…we're in the Land of Fire, which is why they probably gave up on us, because they know we need to reach Wave. Good thing I sent for help." He says, trying to come up with a plan to deal with their problem.

"Well do you know when they'll get here?" Tazuna asks the swordsman.

"Manabu!" A voice shouts out, grasping Manabu's attention to look down the road. He could see three people coming his way.

"Well, that was fast…wait, I know that middle guy…" Manabu then realizes who came.

"Manabu!" Naruto leaps up and tackle-glomps his mentor to the ground, happy to finally see him after days of waiting.

"Naruto, get off! What are you doing here?" He questions the blond, pushing him off of his body. He then notices the two others with him. "Are those your teammates?"

"Yeah! They're going to help us take out those guys after you." He says, rising up onto his feet.

"We are?" Sakura asks, questioning the reason they came. "I thought we only came to bring him back!"

"Naruto, did you sneak out of the village without permission? There's no way the Hokage would send a bunch of genin as back up, especially for an A-Class mission like this." Manabu says to him, causing them to lift their eyebrows in surprise. "What would Terumi say if she heard something happened to you?"

"A-Class? Aren't you just escorting some old guy back to his home?" Naruto asks, remembering the Hokage telling him about the mission he took.

"It was just an escort…but not long after we were traveling we got attacked by a group of rogue ninjas. That's when I got Tazuna here to spill the guts." Manabu then walks over to Tazuna, and places his right arm around him, who slightly pales at what will soon be revealed. "Apparently this old bridge builder lied about some stuff on the mission; Waves has been taken over by a shipping magnate called Gato, who has effectively bankrupted the entire village. The only way they can revitalize the economy is by forging a bridge to the mainland, and bypass his shipping monopoly."

"So he hired a group of ninjas to make sure it stays the way it is." Another voice says. The three genin gasp in fear when they realize how familiar the voice is. Appearing behind them is Kakashi. "Hello, Naruto."

'Oh shit!' Naruto curses.

"Kakashi-sensei, let me be the first to say…it was all Naruto's idea! I swear!" Sakura says, hiding behind him so he could take the blame.

"Hey!" – Naruto

"You can explain it to me when we reach Waves." Kakashi says, bringing surprise to the kid's faces.

"What? We're still going?" They ask him in unison.

"My mission is to find you three and assist Manabu on his. Since you're my responsibility I guess I can bring you along." Kakashi says to his students. 'After all, we're close to the Land of Water, the Mizukage's territory. If we run into trouble she can assist us.'

"Then that means we get to go on an A-class mission!" Naruto squeals, bouncing up and down.

"And when we're done you'll all go back and face punishment." At that all three of them pale. Sasuke and Sakura then turn to Naruto, and punch him in the face.


	3. Venom Showdown! Lightning Dragon's Roar!

Disclaimer: I do not own this franchise or the challenge. Masashi Kishimoto and Challenger do.

_**Chapter 3: Venomous Showdown: The Lightning Dragon's Roar!**_

After Kakashi joined their group, the ninjas and their client, and Manabu, take a boat ride to Nami. Without wanting to run into any trouble, Manabu and Kakashi carried Tazuna towards his home. It was successful in that they didn't run into Zabuza and that other guy, but they were tired beyond belief because of it.

When they reach his home he knocks on the door, and out steps a mid-age woman with long dark blue hair. "Oh, father! You've finally returned! Did they accept the request?"

"Yes, thankfully. These five here will be my bodyguards until the bridge is complete." Tazuna says to her daughter.

She approaches the ninjas, and Manabu, and bows to them. "Thank you for your troubles. Thank you so much!"

"Uh, sure. It's no problem. It's all part of the mission." Kakashi says to her, smiling at the older woman.

After formalities were exchanged they took the rest of the day to rest. Later tomorrow morning Kakashi took his students deep into the forest for training, while Manabu watched the bridge builder that day as he began constructing the bridge.

"Okay, today I shall teach you three how to climb trees." The silver perm ninja says to his students.

"But we already know how to climb trees." Sakura says to him.

Kakashi performs a hand seal on his feet and walks up the tree without the use of his hands. With chakra transferred to his feet it is possible. "Not like this."

"Whoa!" Naruto says in amazement.

"By concentrating chakra to the feet one can climb up flat surfaces without touching them. Try it." He then looks down at his students as they insert chakra into their legs.

"This will be a piece of cake-"" Naruto says as he tries it first, but falls down without making a second step, hitting the back of his head. "Ouch! What just happened?"

"Too little chakra and you won't stick to the surface." Kakashi says to the blond ninja.

Sasuke tries it next, but after going seven steps the surface breaks off. He cuts the part of the tree he stops at and lands gracefully on his feet. 'This is harder than it looks.'

"Too much and the surface breaks underneath you, and you'll repel yourself off." Kakashi adds to his lecture. "You need to find the perfect balance of chakra in order to move on surfaces conflicted by gravity. Maybe then you'll be as good as Sakura."

"What?" Both of them say in unison. They look up to see Sakura has climbed to the top of the tree without trouble.

"I can't believe you two couldn't do this. It's easy!" She says, smirking and looking down her nose at her teammates.

"Since Sakura has finished her training, she can leave to protect the bridge builder with Manabu." Kakashi says, as Sakura leaps out from the tree. She then watches as they try again.

Naruto tries to perform it again, and this time he is able to reach up to 7 steps like Sasuke. But when his rival tries it he can go up to 13. An angered Naruto begins to try again, but before he does he remembers a little advice his former mentor Manabu once gave him.

'I can't do this unless I stay focused on my task. I can't let my petty rivalry over Sasuke get the better of me.' He thinks over and over. As long as he remembers this he can stay focused on his goal and not let his chakra fluctuate due to anger.

Naruto and Sasuke then try it once more at the same time. This time, while Sasuke could only make it up to 14, Naruto made 16. Both Kakashi and Sakura become a bit impressed at Naruto's progress at that moment, while Sasuke remains surprised. 'A few seconds ago he could barely keep up with me, but just now he surpassed me.'

Sakura and Kakashi leave the two alone for the moment, allowing them the privacy to train. "How did Naruto get so good all of a sudden?"

"He's finally learning to focus…something he should have been doing for so long." Kakashi says as he answers her. 'Even if he masters this, complete chakra control is still a major challenge to him…after all, the more chakra one has the harder it is to control it. And since his is greater than my own, he'll have a much harder time than I did.'

Elsewhere, Manabu sits by on the sidelines as he watches Tazuna and his workers continue building the bridge. As he does he remembers seeing how much poverty this land has suffered. 'It really is terrible. This place has to change soon or else no one will be able to live in it.'

"Uh, Yuuki-san?" Sakura says as she approaches the civilian swordsman. It seems she has come from the forest, and somewhere along the lines has been left behind by Kakashi.

"Sakura, so you completed your training. Are Naruto and that other kid still working at it?" He asks her, and receives a nod. "Dang. I was hoping to take him with me to Kiri."

"Kirigakure no Sato?" She asks him, and receives a nod for a yes. "Can I ask you something?"

"Uh, sure." He says to her.

"You're Naruto's mentor right? You're the one who protected him all these years?" She asks him, to which he nods once more.

"I am the one who now looks after him, but only ever since he turned 7. He was alone in the orphanage before that." He says to her.

"You mean, he's been alone all those times, and you weren't there to help him?" She asks him in an angry tone. "Why didn't you help him before?"

"…Character." He answers the girl's question. "If I took him in and sheltered him he wouldn't understand the pain other people would have. Being as cheerful and happy as he is, he wouldn't be that great of a ninja."

"That's not a good reason! Nobody has to suffer like he did!" She shouts this time.

"You act as if I never stood up for him when he was ever in trouble." Manabu states, lowering his eyebrows, "These were all requests, and promises I lived by because I cared about him and his parents."

"His parents?" – Sakura

"Didn't you know? They died the day he was born: his mother from an illness she was born with, and his father for classified reasons." – Manabu

"Classified? Is there something I should know about him?" She asks the spiky haired man.

"Nothing you can know about." He says to her, before standing up to stretch. "I guess…we can go tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? Why do you want to go to Kiri with Naruto?" – Sakura

"Why do you care about him? Don't you care about that other guy?" He asks her, to which she blushes a little.

"I do like Sasuke…and Naruto is my friend. Don't act like he's in love with me." She says to the adult. He snickers as she tells him that.

"Well, I guess you're right. I would assume his fiancé wouldn't want him being with any else." – Manabu

"His what?" – Sakura

"Although there is his bloodline to account, which would enact the-"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah-what did you mean by fiancé?" Sakura asks him, interrupting him once more.

"I'll let him tell you." He says to the girl. Afterwards things begin to quiet down, as he watches over the bridge builder.

Two Days Later…

"Finally! I got that technique in the bag now!" Naruto shouts out, sliding down the tree he climbed up just now.

"That's good Naruto. Now let's go." Manabu says, grabbing the ninja by the back of his jumpsuit. "We're heading for Kiri."

"Aw! But I want to continue training. I'm on the verge of unlocking the fifth sword!" Naruto says to the swordsman.

"Mei will be there." Instantly Naruto calms himself down and gains a smile on his face.

"Well what are we waiting for? Let's go!" He shouts, grabbing his mentor and running off.

"It's this way." He pulls Naruto into the opposite direction. Both of them draw their respective Twilight Star, which releases dark fumes from its blade, and they dash at incredible speed towards Kiri.

Back with Kakashi and the others they are with Tazuna as he continues to fix the bridge. Or they will by the time they reach it. But when they do they come across a very horrible surprise…

The other bridge builders were dead.

"What happened here?" Tazuna questions, about to run forward to see what happened. Kakashi steps in front of him.

"They're here." He says, his eyes staying on the scene in front of him.

Suddenly, two figures flash before them. One of them is a tall man with a mask over his face, save for his eyes. On his head is a headband with the Kiri symbol crossed out, and on his back a zanbatou. Beside him is a little child, almost Sasuke's size, with black long hair. He is dressed differently from his partner, and has a Noh mask over his face.

"Zabuza Momochi." Kakashi figures, his right arm rising up to his own headband.

"Ah, if it isn't the Copy Cat Ninja of Konoha. And look, he's brought some playmates for you Haku." Zabuza says, smirking underneath his mask.

"Sensei, is that other kid the one who gave Manabu problems?" Sakura asks her teacher.

"No, his appearance doesn't match the description…are you the ones Gato hired to kill Tazuna?" The silver perm jonin questions the murderous assassin.

"Oh? So, that spiky haired fellow mentioned that other guy?" Zabuza questions the silver haired jonin. "He's a little preoccupied at the moment; in-fact, I can only assume he's dealing with those other two."

"Naruto." Sakura mutters in a worried voice.

"This isn't what I expected. Sakura, watch Tazuna. Sasuke, I'm afraid you'll have to deal with his friend. I'll handle Zabuza." Kakashi says, as he lifts his headband up to reveal his Sharingan eye.

"How far do you think it is?" Naruto asks Manabu as they continue to move at high speed. Right now Naruto and Manabu are hopping across trees, the mentor believing it to be to safest way to move until they can take a boat.

"It's real far. In fact it's over cross a sea of water. Once we reach the edge of Nami we can borrow a boat and travel to Kiri oversea." Manabu says to his pupil.

But as they traveled an image goes off in Manabu's eyes, and his head perks up in surprise. He then grabs Naruto, shouting, "Duck!"

Suddenly, a giant lightning bolt rains down on them, razing the trees they were on. Manabu looks up at the sky, and sees that there are no clouds above them. They then see someone in the middle of the impact site where the lightning bolt hit. "Hello, Manabu. I see you've brought a friend."

"Kaizen…" He glares angrily at his opponent, a tall man in his 30s with light blue perm hair. He has a black cloak with blue markings over it, and a jonin outfit on underneath. On his face, a dark purple scar-like mark with a red outline, and black eyes with yellow irises. Over his forehead is the Kumo Headband with a cut across it.

Kaizen makes a devious chuckle while watching his enemy rise up. "How's it going, buddy? I haven't seen ya since I fried your ass back on the continent."

"Shut up Kaizen. We were never buddies. The moment I found out who you were I resolved to stop you." Manabu says to the guy in front of him.

"Who's that guy?" Naruto asks the older swordsman.

"That's the guy who attacked me along with Zabuza back then. It was because of his interference that I needed help on this mission. He's a missing ninja from Kumo called Kaizen, and a master of Raiton jutsus." Manabu explains to Naruto. He then wonders how Kaizen knew where they were. It's as if he knew they were going to speak with the Mizukage.

Kaizen holds his right hand up into the sky, as electricity sparks around it. Manabu realizes what's coming, and kicks Naruto away. "Juu-Man Volts! (100,000 Volts)" Manabu is electrified by his manipulation of lightning. He draws Twilight Star and swings upward, having the sword change forms for a split second. This cancels out the lightning bolt, and sets him free. Kaizen laughs maniacally as he looks down at Manabu in pain. "Aw, what's wrong? Can't take a hundred thousand shocks?"

"Manabu!" Naruto calls out, showing great worry for his mentor.

"Stay back Naruto. You're no match for him." Manabu warns him, transforming his sword into Chromedread. Diamond spikes extend from the blade, and fire off at him.

"Raiton: Hiraishin! (Lightning Release: Flying Thunder God)" Electricity sparks throughout his body as he holds his hand up, redirecting the diamond spikes coming at him. Manabu begins to charge at him, hoping to get to him before he could prepare a follow up. But using his lightning skills he disappears from Manabu's reach and appears behind him. "JuuMan Volt!"

He sends a torrent of electricity at Manabu, causing enough pain to the swordsman to cause him to fall to his knees. Smoke begins to come out of his body as he falls down. Kaizen then steps on the swordsman's head. "You know, there's an old saying; 'Even those who master the sword must bow to those who master magic.' That's all you are Manabu, a sword saint. Without that sword you're as useless as your little friend."

"Shut up!" Naruto yells, drawing his Twilight Star and preparing to take Kaizen down. The lightning user turns his attention towards the orange kid, before releasing a tiny shock to keep Manabu down. "How can you call Manabu useless? He's a strong person in his own right!"

"It is true. That is why the samurai are out of business, to give the ninja, who were much, more valuable and stronger tools, a chance in this world. Someone who cannot use chakra shouldn't bother trying to be one, like Mr. Swordsman here. And you, a young genin with no skills in murder and no power to stand up to a weakling like him, are better off giving up before they kill their teammates. People like you are unforgivable." Kaizen's speech breaks Manabu's heart a little, as his teeth grit in anger. He tries to stand and fight back, but receives another jolt of electricity. "See? Look at how he struggles? You'll only end up two feet under, like your three friends when Zabuza and his tool deal with them."

"Shut up! There's no way I'll be like that! I'm the man who's going to surpass Yondaime Hokage!" He shouts, holding his katana up towards Kaizen.

"And silly delusions like that are even more unforgivable! JuuMan Volt: Luster Cannon!" Kaizen makes a couple of hand seals, and opens his mouth to charge up white electricity. He then releases a large stream of condensed electricity at Naruto, who received the full force of the blow.

"Naruto!" Manabu calls out, his face still stuck in the muddy dirt.

The attack razes the ground and trees in its path. It didn't seem like anything would survive in a beam of lightning like that. But as the attack subsides, and the smoke clears up, Naruto can be seen standing in his exact spot, as if nothing happened to him. His lips get sucked into his mouth between his teeth, resembling the face Luffy made when Enel's lightning held no power over him.

"Did he…did he dodge that?" Kaizen questions while removing his foot from Manabu's head to approach the boy.

'Dodge…no, he took the attack head on…but how…' Manabu knows Naruto couldn't have dodged that attack, and he certainly wasn't a shadow clone.

"Raiton: Dairaikyu no Jutsu! (Great Lightning Ball Technique)" He then releases a giant ball of lightning at the kid, who takes it all in. By the end of the attack he is shock to be completely fine again. Mad, Kaizen grabs Naruto by the shirt, and charges his hands. "Raiton: Dengekiha! (Lightning Release: Electromagnetic Shock Wave)"

Naruto receives a hundred million volts of electricity. This attack is strong enough to burn off the zipper on his jumpsuit and cause his clothes to sizzle. But even with all this he doesn't feel affected by the attack. Manabu finally pulls himself to his feet, in time to see the last attack. He could also see Naruto's teeth have grown sharp canines, similar to a beast. 'Of course! His bloodline took form! For Naruto to be able to survive a direct lightning attack means one of his elemental affinities is Lightning!'

"QUIT FOOLING AROUND!" Naruto shouts, before punching the lightning user in the face with a fist charged with lightning. He knocks him to the ground flat on his face.

Kaizen pulls himself back up to his feet, and knees, and growls at the ninja. "How…how could you do this? Every bit of my chakra was put into that last attack!"

"Thank you, Naruto." Manabu says, tapping his foe on his shoulder.

Kaizen turns around to face Manabu. The Twilight Star transforms into a silver short double edged sword. The blade itself is really dull, being unable to cut through anything. As he strikes Kaizen the attack causes an explosion.

The strike knocks him out, and onto the ground. Manabu returns his sword back to normal, and stabs it into the ground. Naruto pokes the unconscious guy. "Why didn't you kill him?"

"He's right, Naruto. I am a ninja, but my heart is too small for coldness. It is not within my obligation to kill people just because they hate me or want me dead. Besides, as a missing ninja he has to be killed by a member of his former village and brought to them." Manabu explains, before brushing his clothes off. As his vest opens up his Konoha headband can be seen wrapped around his waist. "Naruto, you must remember this; ninjas sometime have to close off their hearts in order to deal with certain missions. It comes to a point where one can't tell if their heartless facade is really a facade. You must never become like that, no matter what."

Naruto nods at his mentor's words, and then turns his attention towards the fallen ninja. He gasps when he realizes that the guy was starting to pull himself back up to his feet. "It...doesn't matter... It doesn't matter if you defeat me...Zabuza and Haku can still finish the job without me."

"Who? What do you mean?" Manabu grabs Kaizen by his coat collar, and pulls him up.

"I'm just some random guy Gato hired for the job, so I don't know much about them. What I do know is that Zabuza has a sort of apprentice with him; a kid around the age of him." Kaizen begins explaining to the spiky-haired denizens of Konoha. A smirk rises up on his face as he continues. "This boy is nothing like that kid over there; he's an experienced killer. He also possesses the ice bloodline Hyoton."

'Damn,' Manabu curses in his head, dropping the lightning user in the process. This isn't what was in their plan. Even if they were to meet with the Mizukage and gather help, Kakashi and the others could be dead by then. If this 'apprentice' really is experienced in killing then Sasuke and Sakura wouldn't stand a chance against him. And Kakashi wouldn't be able to help them because of Zabuza.

"Change of plan, Naruto. We're going back to the bridge to stop Zabuza and that other kid." Manabu says, grabbing hold of Naruto to prepare to head back.

"But I thought we were going to get help from Mei!" Naruto says to him. They spent all this time trying to reach Kiri and now they have to give that up to return to the bridge.

"I'm sorry Naruto. We'll have to postpone our trip sometime later. Duty calls." Manabu explains, before darkness wraps around his sword. "Let's go!"

"Right! I guess we'll have to visit Mei some other time…" Naruto says with a little sadness. The two ninjas dash off back to the bridge, knowing that would be the last place they'd go to.

At The Bridge…

Kaizen picks himself back up, trying his best to move after taking an explosion and a punch of electricity to the face. It seems to have paralyzed him a bit. He falls to the ground once more after failing to move. "They won't make it...they're too weak to do anything..."

Speaking of which, things weren't going well for them. Right now Kakashi is already bleeding, having to take the blow for Sakura and Tazuna from Zabuza. Although Sasuke was having similar 'luck', being forced to duel against Zabuza's apprentice, or tool, Haku. It was practically a one-sided battle, one the Uchiha couldn't win.

Proof of this is the fact that Sasuke looks like a freaking pincushion. Around him are ice mirrors, all of which contain his opponent's form and appearance. Back with Tazuna Sakura could tell her friend was in pain at the moment. She wanted to help him, but she couldn't because she had to protect the client.

'It's amazing. Zabuza was able to find the weak point of my Sharingan. Sasuke won't last at this rate either…' Kakashi figures, as Zabuza disappears in the mist. The missing ninja has previously summoned a mist all around them to hide inside it. With it, Kakashi couldn't track him down and battle the ninja directly. Zabuza also has his eyes closed, to prevent himself from falling under the power of the Sharingan. This wouldn't be a problem for him either since he's skilled enough to identify another person through sound alone.

Sasuke picks himself back up, and stares at the first mirror in front of him. Haku comes out from the mirror behind him, and pulls out a single kunai. "This is the end…"

"Take this!" A shout comes out, and suddenly a metallic sword is heaved through the air towards Haku. Since it came at his blind spot he couldn't dodge it. The sword hits him in the right shoulder, and causes an explosion. Such an explosion is strong enough to destroy the mirror he was beside as well.

A surprised Sasuke looks around to see where it came from, and notices Naruto picking up his sword. "The Alchemic Sword, Gilgamesh. While it can't cut anything it can cause chemical explosions upon hitting anything that isn't metal."

"Naruto!" Sasuke says, finally coming to his senses when he sees his teammate.

"So, this is the final member of your team…" Haku says as he stands back up to face the newcomer.

'Naruto has arrived…that must mean Manabu is back too.' Kakashi figures, having heard the obnoxious, knuckleheaded ninja's shout.

"Kakashi, you deal with Zabuza. I can take care of Tazuna." Manabu says to the Sharingan user. The silver haired shinobi nods without looking, and disappears into the thick mist. "Sakura, are you okay?"

"Yeah, thank you." She answers; calming her breathing after realizing it's him. "Is Naruto here?"

"Yes. I guess he's fighting that other guy with Sasuke." Sakura breathes a sigh of relief. She seems glad that both of her friends are okay.

"Sasuke, are you okay?" Naruto asks his teammate, about to run into the dome of ice mirrors to help him.

"Naruto, get stay on the outside of the mirrors. Try to bust them up while I deal with him in here." He tells the outside ninja. Without hesitation Haku merges with one of his mirrors, causing all of them to show images of him.

"Okay, sure." Naruto raises Gilgamesh high over his head, and ruses towards the first mirror he sees. But as he does Haku appears on that side, and grabs hold of Naruto. He then pulls him into the mirror, and tosses him out the other side with Sasuke. "What just happened?"

"Crap! I guess he can do it on both sides too! You know what, screw this! Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu!" Sasuke fires a giant ball of fire at the first mirror he sees, but his attack fails to melt it. "What?"

"There's no point in trying to melt my mirrors. They were created from my bloodline, so any attempts at trying to melt it will fail." Haku explains to them from within the safety of his mirrors.

"Let me try! Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Naruto creates a dozen clones of himself, sending them at each mirror. But Haku flies out of one of the mirror, and at a speed unrivaled by any slaughters each and every one of the clones. "I don't think this is gonna work."

"It doesn't matter how fast you are, or how many you are. As long as I'm going from one mirror to the next, I can gain amazing speed. You have no chance against me." Haku says to them, from the safety of his mirrors.

Before Naruto could make more clones, Haku releases a flurry of senbon needles at them both. Both of them block their vital areas, hoping to stave off dead. Sasuke could stand clearly, but the needles that hit Naruto stuck on certain pressure points of his body, and caused him to go numb. Before Haku could throw more at Naruto, Sasuke grabs the fallen ninja and easily dodges his attack. He then stares up at the ice user, his eyes flaring with the Sharingan.

'The Sharingan…the same technique that other person holds.' Haku then leaps out from his mirror to attack Sasuke, but the Uchiha grabs hold of his arms and throws him into one of his mirrors, dropping Naruto in the progress. 'As I thought, I can't keep up with him now.'

"What's wrong? You don't look so tough now, do you?" Sasuke taunts the ice user.

'I'll have to force him into a position where he has to lower his defenses.' Haku then notices the Twilight Star has left Naruto's hands. Using his speed he shoots out from his mirrors and steals it. "I'll be taking this."

"Hey, what are you up to?" Sasuke shouts, preparing to perform another fireball.

"I will use this to expose your weakness…" Haku says, entering his mirror domes. He then turns his attention at Naruto, at throws his own sword at him. Sasuke's eyes rise up in shock, as he knows what he's doing. He rushes at Naruto, forcing chakra to his feet to increase his speed, and grabs the sword with his left hand. The sword pierces through his hand, but he stops it.

But before he could do anything else, Haku has already tossed a flurry of needles at Sasuke, who suffers the full force of it. Sasuke collapses onto the ground, finally succumbing to his wounds. At that moment though Naruto opens his eyes, and gasps when he sees Sasuke has been defeated. "Sasuke!"

'That kid. He woke up too early, and the needles are still in him.' Haku muses, knowing the effects of pressure point paralysis.

He gets up to his knees to try and save his friend, but he didn't even react. 'No. He couldn't have killed him…he couldn't have…'

"Your friend put up a great fight, but it was to no avail. Even for a great ninja like him, I was the stronger fighter." Haku says, holding up three needles with his right fist. "If you miss him…I can send you to him."

Images of Sasuke flashes through Naruto's mind, from the first time they met, to the time they trained together ever since they came here. He then realizes the friendship they had was real, that they were truly friends. "You…you killed him…you bastard…"

"There's no point in getting mad; this is the life of a shinobi. A kid like you wouldn't know anything about it. That's why things like this tend to happen, because of your weakness." As Haku says these words, Naruto's eyes close without him realizing it. The ice user then senses something coming out of the ninja's body, just as his form releases sparks of electricity. The senbon fly off his body, his wounds start to heal, and a dark and ominous red chakra leaks out of him. "What's this feeling? This chakra…"

"You bastard!" Naruto screams. As he opens his eyes, they are shown to be blood red and the pupils have become slit.

"Who are you?" Haku questions him, a bit of fear in the tone of his voice. Naruto then pulls the Twilight Star out of Sasuke's hand. Before facing Haku, he places his free hand onto the Uchiha's chest, and a shock of electricity sparks through his body. This jolt causes his heart to start moving again. 'Electro-shock rejuvenation?'

"I'll make sure you pay for this!" Naruto then swings his sword at Haku, the shockwave itself enough to crack the ice on each mirror.


	4. Road to The Chunin Exams

_**Chapter 4: Road to the Chunin Exams**_

'What is this feeling in my heart…is something going on over there?' Sakura thinks, holding her heart with her left hand, since the other has a kunai in it. 'I can feel a powerful chakra coming from over there, and it feels like Naruto's, but why does it feel evil?'

"Are you okay?" Tazuna asks the little girl.

"Yes. I'm okay." She answers the old man. Her attention draws back to her Naruto and Sasuke. 'What's going on over there?' She looks up at Manabu, who has tensed up as well. 'He feels it as well…'

'Naruto has released some of the Kyubi's chakra. I was expecting something like this to happen, but it's too soon. And there's too much of it being released. The fox must be influencing him with his chakra.' Manabu realizes as he sensed Naruto's energy. He grabs hold of the Twilight Star attached to his back as he comes up with a plan. 'I could try to shoot him with the Sealing Sword's arrows, but I would have to be able to see in order to do so.'

'What's this foul smell in the air? It's not from Kakashi…I see, that kid from earlier must have done something!' Zabuza muses, sensing the demon chakra as well.

'Did the seal break? No, it just loosened a bit. Of course it's to be expected, since the Yondaime forged it to let him use the fox's chakra. I better end this fast before things get out of hand.' Kakashi says in his mind as he brings out a scroll. "Kuchiyose: Doton: Tsuiga no Jutsu!(Summoning: Earth Release: Tracking Fang Technique)"

"I may not know who you are, but I refuse to let you do what you want anymore. It's time to end this." Haku says to Naruto. The boy opens his mouth, as lightning gathers in it. 'What's he doing?'

"Rairyu no Hokou! (Lightning Dragon's Roar)" Naruto releases a blast of electricity, but it only goes out as an electromagnetic roar. Due to him only recently learning this power he has only been able to gather so much to his mouth. This is enough though to crack the ice, some of them even shattering into pieces.

'He's taken off guard! Now's my chance!' Haku breaks free from one of the ice to strike the boy. With his lightning powers activated Naruto flashes away to dodge him. Haku, upon realizes his attack failed, prepares to enter an ice mirror. But he grabs hold of Haku's left arm with his right, glaring into the boy's eyes. 'No! It's no good…I can't win.'

"Rairyu no," Naruto draws his fist back, with a hundred thousand volts of electricity gathers all around his hand. Haku cringes in fear as he stares into the demon boy's eyes. He ends the suspense, and the slow motion, and slams his fist into Haku's face square in the nose. "Kaminari Punch!"

(Lightning Dragon's Thunder Punch)

The strike blows Haku through his mirrors, and causing him to skid across the bridge like a rubber-ball. The boy then dashes towards Haku's electrified unconscious body, holding the Twilight Star in its Chromedread form. It would seem he plans to end Haku's life once and for all.

And he would have, except the moment he could see Haku's face, and the sadness and pain already inflicted upon him, Naruto stopped himself from continuing. Naruto slowly calms down, which causes the demon chakra to recede back into his body. He falls to his knees after stopping himself, and begins to gasp for air. Even though his eyes have returned to normal and the demon chakra has left him, his teeth are still sharp like a reptile's.

"What…just…happened…" Naruto asks himself. He slowly gasps for air as he tries to grasp the situation. "I remember fighting against that guy, but then things started to go a little dark for me-Hey!"

Naruto then realizes that the guy he was just fighting is at his feet. "What's he doing there…wait, Sasuke!"

Back with his friend the duck butt haired ninja slowly opens his eyes, the Sharingan eye reverting to normal, having been brought back to life from Naruto's electric powers. 'What happened…I remember, seeing a beautiful field of flowers and a giant chicken fighting a fat guy...'

He then notices Naruto up ahead, and picks himself up after pulling out the senbon in his body. "He, actually beat him?"

"That was close…he almost killed him…" Manabu says to himself in a whisper. He could sense Naruto has calmed down enough to stop the Kyubi from murdering the boy.

"Raikiri! (Lightning Blade)" Kakashi shouts as he jabs his palm, empowered by electricity, into Zabuza's chest cavity. Due to his jutsu, which summoned a group of dogs that now hold him down, the demon of the mist couldn't move an inch. This left him unable to dodge or block the lightning jutsu that has now carved through his heart.

Naruto stops before Sasuke, realizing he's alive. "Sasuke…you're okay…"

"Of course I am. Do you really think a bunch of needles could kill me?" He states in a smug voice. The Uchiha then looks around in search of Haku. "What happened to that other guy?"

"I don't know. I remember seeing you on the ground, some things got a little blurry for me, and then that guy was right below me." He says, explaining the things he remembers. 'What was that red chakra I felt before?' He then looks back at Haku, and after blinking a few times he asks, "What do we do with this guy?"

"Who cares about him? He tried to kill us." Sasuke replies, crossing his arms over his chest. The ninjas seem to notice that the mist is lifting as well. With it gone he could clearly spot Kakashi killing Zabuza. Manabu falls to his hands and knees, finally being able to calm down and rest after seeing the battle has ended. "That monster is dead too."

"Who?" Naruto looks behind him, and sees Kakashi lifting Zabuza over his shoulder.

"Let's go everyone. The battle is over." The silver haired ninja says. He turns to Manabu, Sakura and Tazuna before walking off. 'His last words…'

_Flashback…_

_"Kakashi…is Haku alive?" Zabuza questions the Konoha ninja. At this point he is still held down by his dogs, and Kakashi is charging his attack._

_"It is faint, but I can sense he's still alive." Kakashi says as he holds up his attack._

_"Good. Make sure he lives right." He replies, before closing his eyes. He then waits for Kakashi to make the final blow, which he does._

_End Flashback…_

'I'm not sure if there's anything I can do…' He then notices Naruto has lifted Haku over his shoulder, and is carrying him as well. 'Maybe he can.'

Two Days Later…

Haku slowly opens his eyes, pain still affecting his body. He looks up to see Naruto sitting in a chair beside him. Haku then realizes that he's in a bedroom, and that he's still alive. But then he remembers his mission and digs into his pocket for senbon, until he realizes that there are no weapons in there. Instead he forms ice on his right arm and prepares to cut into him.

Naruto bites into his frozen hand, his sharp canines strong enough to chew through the ice. After spitting him out he says, "Whoa, calm down! I'm not going to fight you. I'm here to talk."

"I don't want to talk with you. Where's Zabuza-sama?" Haku questions him, preparing to create another ice weapon.

"Zabuza…is dead." Naruto says, causing Haku to freeze in shock. Tears begin to collect in his ducts.

"No. It can't be! He's not dead!" He shouts at him. He then punches Naruto in the chest.

Feeling guilty, Naruto allows him to punch his chest. Haku cries as he wails on the blonde's body, and he lets him take his frustration and anger out on him. "It's okay. I'm sorry."

By the time he stops hitting him Haku grabs hold of his shoulders. "It's not fair…if I can't be Zabuza's weapon…I don't have any reason to live."

"What's your name?" Naruto asks the ice using ninja.

"Haku." He replies.

"Haku," Naruto looks up at the ice user's headband, and sees that it is of Kiri. "Is it really so important that you have to live as someone's slave?"

"Yes. Because I was born with a bloodline limit in a land where they are forbidden, I was hunted and hated by everyone. I was so happy when I met Zabuza, and he gave me a purpose for living." Haku confesses, crying more into Naruto's shoulder.

"Forbidden bloodlines? In Kiri? Are you talking about Mei?" Naruto asks him, a little confused about what's going on.

"Mei? The Yondaime Mizukage, Yagura, brought upon this decree. Do you know the current Mizukage?" Haku asks him at the end.

"Well, it's a little complicated. But to make matters short, she's my fiancé." At this Haku gasps and blushes as red as a healthy tomato.

"Fiancé? But she's so much older than you!" He shouts. Naruto then nods, a light blush appearing on his face. "When did that happen?"

"Apparently, it was set up before I was born." Naruto says sheepishly, scratching his head in embarrassment. "I was skeptical at first, as I grew up I thought it would end badly. But when I realized she did it out of her own free will, and rejected hundreds of other suitors who were all better choices than me, I decided to go with it. And she was happy about it. She was really glad to be marrying me."

"She was…" Haku whispers to himself.

"I could always ask her to let you join her village, legally." Naruto says. At this Haku's eyes light up, and he stares at the orange boy.

"You…you mean it?" Haku asks him.

"Well, she might look the other way for you for me." He says, and Haku then hugs him.

"Thank you Naruto! You won't forget this." He cries, tears of happiness now coming down his eyes. 'Zabuza, I'm moving on. I'll never forget the things you've done for me.'

"It's no problem. I wouldn't mind helping a pretty girl like you." He says, a little blush rising on his face.

"Well thank you Naruto." Haku says to his new friend. Naruto then rises up, pushing Haku off of him, and prepares to go to the door. But before he could, the ice user says, "But I'm a guy."

"Yeah. I would like-what!" Naruto looks at the dark haired boy/girl person, who has decided to stand up from the bed. "You're a guy?"

"Yeah." Haku then pulls off his pants, and then finally his underwear to reveal his penis. "See?"

Naruto screams in terror and tries to blind his vision. "WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU? MY EYES!"

"What's going on here-AHH!" Sakura says as she enters the room. She then screams as she enters the room and sees Haku's rooster, before blushing and passing out.

"What's with all the noise-AHH!" Sasuke repeats the exact same things Sakura does, except without the blushing. He then runs out the door while rubbing soap in his eyes and being horrified.

"Maybe I should stop showing people my penis." – Haku

Downstairs in the dining room Kakashi, Tsunami, Manabu and Tazuna are all quietly sitting together, drinking tea. As they hear the screams Kakashi says, "I was wondering when he would bring that topic up."

"Haku-chan could make a very pretty girl, you know." Tsunami adds, taking a sip of her tea. "So is it true Naruto is engaged to the Mizukage?"

"Indeed." Manabu confirms before sipping his tea.

"Ha! I've seen the Mizukage before! There's no way that little pip-squeak could end up bagging that hotty!" Tazuna says in a laughing tone.

"Father, behave yourself!" Tsunami scolds her father before she elbows him in the arm.

Back upstairs Haku pulls his pants back up, and is now in the same room sitting on the carpeted floor beside Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke. Sakura looks over at Naruto and asks him, "So, you're really engaged to the Mizukage?"

"I know, weird, isn't it?" Naruto replies, a weak smile on his face. He even scratches the back of his head to add to his cluelessness.

"Aren't you a little too young to be engaged to an older woman?" Sasuke asks the blond.

"Yes, yes I am. But I'm still going through with it! If Mei didn't really want to marry me in the first place she wouldn't have waited this long. She really does mean it." Naruto states to his male teammate and friend.

"Naruto…" Sakura blushes a little as she listens to his determination. 'Wow. Who knew he would be so devoted to her…Oh well, it's too late for me now…'

"I'm sorry I tried to kill you. I was just trying to make myself useful to Zabuza-sama." Haku says to Sasuke.

"…I'll get over it. But I want a rematch sometime soon." Sasuke says to the girly boy.

"Sure." Haku replies, and then turns his attention to the lightning ninja. 'What was that thing that attacked me though? It was like someone was controlling him…whatever. I'll figure it out later.'

Elsewhere While The Ninjas Rested…

"Damn!" Gato curses, slamming his fist down on his desk. "They failed in their mission!"

"We should have attacked the old man's family while they were distracted." One of his swordsman guards says while resting his hand on his blade's handle.

"To hell with this; I'll just hire those Akatsuki guys like last time!" Gato curses, before picking up a blank scroll and a pen. "Prepare a messenger bird."

"That's all I needed to know." A feminine voice speaks in a soft tone. Out from the shadows of the room appears Terumi Mei, the Godaime Mizukage of Kiri.

'Oh shit!' "Well, Mizukage-san, to what do I owe the pleasure?" Gato asks in a calm voice. Although it is clear he is nervous, for obvious reasons.

"The council has been watching your criminal activities for a while. After discovering the Demon Brothers in Konoha prison, I was informed they were hired by you, for all the terrible things you've done here." She says to him. She then slowly approaches Gato's desk, a smile present on her lips. "Your punishment has been decreed, and will result in death."

"Not so fast!" Gato presses a button on his desk, and a bracelet shoots out and cuffs onto her right hand. "Now, that little tool there will prevent you from collecting chakra during hand seals. You won't be shutting anyone down, or even leaving here."

"So that's what this is…" Suddenly more thugs and bandits come out from behind hidden contrapments in the walls, each one brandishing a sharp weapon.

"Now, be a good little girl and give yourself up. But if you do wish to resist try to kill a few of them. I'll have to pay them less." The short little monster states to the woman.

"You don't realize my power, do you…" Suddenly the bracelet melts off her hand. This shocks Gato to the point of fear. "I hold the power to melt anything I touch, and destroy anyone from the inside out."

"Get her!" Gato shouts, commanding all his men to attack.

First second – "Futton: Suppairyu Hydra! (Boil Release: Acid Dragon Hydra)"

Next second – Acid oozes off of her body, taking the form of a cartoonish dragon.

Third second – The Hydra travels throughout the room and goes through each and every thug. Gato ducks under his desk to avoid it.

In three seconds flat Mei has severely burned all of the thugs and bandits, causing them to fall to the ground to writhe in pain. Let's see what a few of them have to say.

"AH! It's in my eyes!"

"It won't stop! The pain won't stop!"

"Please! Save me!"

"I don't listen to dead people." She says, before heading over to Gato. "Now, I will give you two choices: you can die by a neurotoxin that will overload your nerves system with immense pain and kill you, or be melted from the ground up."

"Please! Let's me cut you a deal! I can give you anything! Money! Men! …Women?" At that last part Mei breaths in allot of air, and then finally release a large stream of lava at him. It consumes him, until he pops right up.

Gato screams and writhes about as he slowly melts from the magma's power. "I'm melting! I'm melting! Oh, what a world!"

"You could give me all the men in the world, but none of them would be as sweet and adorable as my fiancé." She says to him, before melting through the magma floor. "Besides, you killed yourself the moment you hired a missing ninja from my village."

"MELTING! MELTING! OWAH WAH!" Gato's final screams die out by the time his head reaches the floor, and melts. The leftover lava sets fire to and burns down the building, but not before the poison kills off the thugs and bandits.

Time Passes…

Naruto and the others prepare to head for Konoha. After another two days of waiting, Tazuna and his crew have finally finished the bridge. Right now they are standing on the completed bridge, but Manabu and Haku wouldn't be going with them.

"So you're not coming back with us?" Naruto asks his former mentor.

"Yup. I may return sometime next month, but at the moment I have to take Haku to Kiri. He has to be tried and tested for loyalty, since he was formally working for Zabuza. I've already let the Hokage know from a messenger bird, so I'll be fine." Manabu says to him, placing his right hand on Haku's left shoulder. The ice user sighs, as he knew this would be coming. "I'm sorry, Naruto. We just have to hope for the best."

'Please look the other way, Mei! For Haku's sake!' Naruto repeats this line over and over in his mind. "It's okay, I guess. Good luck Haku."

"Thank you, Naruto." Haku says to his new friend.

"Thank you for all your help. I hope you're okay." Tazuna says to the ninjas. Naruto, Kakashi, Sakura and Sasuke then head towards the main land, across the bridge, and take the time to admire the name:

Onaruto Hashi

By the time they reach Konoha, which took a little less time due to the bridge, it was nighttime. Kakashi made his report to the Hokage, and let his students go free. After wards they got punished for leaving the village without permission: a month of D-Ranked missions for half the price. Sasuke and Sakura took their anger out on Naruto quickly and violently.

And now, a month after the events in Nami, Naruto is shown to be eating ramen at his regular spot: Ichiraku Ramen. After eating two bowls, and ending up on his third, he stops enjoying it after beginning to think about Manabu. Ayame notices this and asks him, "What's wrong Naruto? I see food in your bowl instead of blurry motions."

"I'm a little worried about Manabu. He and Haku have been gone for a month and I didn't get any word from them. I hope they're okay." Naruto says to the girl.

"Don't worry Naruto. I'm sure they'll be okay." Ayame says to him. "So, what did the Hokage say to you about your bloodline?"

"The what now?" Naruto asks her, not paying attention at the moment. He then thinks over what she said, and remembers back to what happened yesterday. "Oh, that! Well, it went like this…"

_Flashback..._

_"So, am I correct to know that you have unlocked your mother's Kekkei Genkai?" Sarutobi asks the ninja. He is shown sitting at his desk while Naruto stands before him._

_"Yes, that's true. Manabu told me this power is how I survived that guy's lightning jutsu. Apparently since it is my natural affinity I can control it and become immune to it. I forgot what he called it though…" Naruto explains to the Hokage._

_"I know what it is: It has two names, Hadouryu or Wave Dragon, and Metsuryu Mado or Dragon Slayer Magic." The Hokage says to him, as Naruto blinks in response. The old man then holds up his hand and out from his sleeve slips a photo of his mother Kushina. "Your mother had the ability to control water to the point where she was almost water itself. Her powers included producing water from her body to attack with the power of a tsunami, the power to consume water and rejuvenate her strength, and the strength of a whirlpool."_

_"So my mother was that great…" Naruto mutters to himself as he takes the photo and looks at it. He could see she has some fangs in her smile, just like he does now._

_"Your affinity must be similar to your father's. He could use lightning and wind." Sarutobi says before making a faint smile. "You're becoming more and more like your parents each day."_

_"Wow, thanks. I just wish they could see me now…" – Naruto_

_"Don't worry, Naruto. I'm sure no matter where they are, they love you, and will always miss you." He says, bringing up a smile on the ninja's face. But then he remembers something important. "I'm sure you'll pass it on down to your clan and their descendents."_

_"The what now?" Naruto didn't quite get that last part. 'It almost sounded like I would get a clan.'_

_"Since you are the only male owner of a certain bloodline you have enacted the Clan Restoration Act. Under such law you are placed under the protection of Konoha, and will have to build your own clan." The Hokage says to him._

_"How do I do that?" Naruto asks him, a little confused as to what he has to do._

_"Well, without exaggeration and sugar-coating, you will have to find and marry enough girls in order to spread around your bloodline enough to grow brightly in the future." – Sarutobi_

_"Oh, so that's how it's done. Well, I guess I can-WHAT!" Naruto screams at the end. "How can I get married to more than one girl? I thought marriage is only suppose to be with two people who love each other!"_

_"Well there are such practices of marriage in which a single person can marry more than one person. Back then it had a different name, one we are forbidden to speak about, but nowadays it's called Polygamy. It's perfectly legal in Konoha, but only under this condition." The Hokage's explanation slowly formulates in Naruto's mind, but he seems to be stuck at the part where he can marry more than one girl. "Girls who own bloodlines cannot marry more than one at a time, since that could lead to disastrous results."_

_"So that's why Mom and Mei didn't end up under this law." Naruto asks Sarutobi._

_"Yes, yes it is. Don't worry though. This doesn't conflict with your arranged marriage with Mizukage-dono. She will be informed of this news." The Hokage says to him, bringing Naruto to sigh in relief._

_"Well, that's good. As long as she's okay with it, I have nothing against it." He says to the old man, a smile coming up on his face. He then holds out his right hand, in hopes to getting some of his elemental energy out. But he fails and sighs in defeat. "Damn it! I'm a little hungry at the moment."_

_"You can't eat electricity you make." Sarutobi says to him, bringing a look of surprise on his face._

_"What? But you said I can eat lightning!" – Naruto_

_"Yes, but it has to have been made by something else. You can't perform a lightning jutsu and eat it. It would be the same as summoning an animal, and trying to eat it." Naruto falls to the ground after hearing that. 'Still, if what Manabu wrote in his letter was true, he may need all the protection and power he needs.'_

_'Oh well, back to good old ramen then.' – Naruto_

_End Flashback..._

"So how many wives can you have?" Ayame asks him, a little curious about his new fortune.

"I think I can get up to 4." Naruto replies. He then holds up his fingers and begins to count, taking his index finger down. "Let's see, Mei is already in, so I only need three more. But where am I going to find one?"

"Well," begins the tepid brown haired ramen girl, looking at where a crossway begins down the street. There she could see a girl with dark purple, or blue, hair hiding herself as she stares at Naruto. "There's always that Hyuga girl following you."

"Who?" Naruto looks back at where she was looking, and sees nobody there.

'Oh god! He was going to look at me! Oh wow! If only I could gather up the courage to talk to him…' She says to herself in her head.

"Hey, there. You're Hinata right?" asks Naruto, after coming up to her.

Hinata gasps when she realizes he's in front of him, and her temperature rises to a high amount. Eventually she falls backwards, collapsing and fading into unconsciousness. "AH! She fainted! Hinata, hold on! I'll help you!"

Naruto places his hand around her arms, and accidentally activates his elemental chakra. Because he does so Naruto shocks her back awake. She sits up straight, her face close up to his, and her hair frilly and wild from the static shock she received. This would obviously bring up the blush from earlier. "Oh, uh…N-Naruto-kun…"

"Hinata…are you okay? You just fainted on me." He says to the poor girl, who was having a hard time staying conscious again.

'Okay, just calm down. Breath in, breathe out. Calmly tell him how you feel, and maybe he'll make you his next wife!' These words come from her brain to her, and she finds herself taking its advice. "Naruto-kun…I…was wondering…"

"Yeah, yeah?" – Naruto

"Would you…like to…train together some time?" She finally makes out her words, almost in a shouting voice. She's still getting use to talking to him.

"Really? Because I was hoping to get more training into this lightning ability of mine." Naruto says to her. He releases her arms, which causes her to fall, in excitement over thinking of what they could do.

Back with Ayame, who watches them leave for training, she sighs as she begins to stare at the bowl he forgot to finish. But before she could dump it out he comes back and pours the growth-stunting food down his throat. He then smiles at her and rejoins Hinata, to go start that training he promised her.

Naruto and Hinata head for his team's training grounds. During their walk Hinata creeps her right hand onto his left, and they continue hand in hand. Both of them blush a bit as they walk, but Naruto's was a little lighter while hers was redder than his mother's hair. During their walk they spot Sakura coming up to them. She notices the blush on their faces, and she gasps when a thought creeps up on her mind. 'Oh no! Is Naruto cheating on his fiancé already? If he makes her mad then the Mizukage will kill him!'

"Oh hey, Sakura! We were just on our way to get some training in! You want to join us?" Naruto asks her at the end. Sakura slowly calms down as she thinks over the situation.

'Oh. He's not cheating; he's just making friends with her.' Sakura says to herself in her mind. "I guess so. Sure, but what about Sasuke?"

"What about him?" Naruto asks her. "But you know, I wonder where he is right now…"

"Hey! Let me go!" A child like voice shouts. This gathers the three ninja's attention.

Elsewhere down the street Konohamaru is manhandling the 'honorable grandson of the third Hokage', manhandled by a dark haired, unknown ninja with mascara over his face and a large object wrapped up behind him. With him is a blond girl close to his age dressed in a pink dress with fishnet stockings. She also has a closed up fan on her back. "And what if I don't?"

"Kankuro put him down! We're not here to cause a war!" The girl says to the guy.

"Don't worry, Temari! He's just some brat who bumped into me. I'm only going to teach him some manners." Kankuro says to the girl, still gripping the child.

"You heard her! Put the kid down!" Naruto shouts at him. He, Sakura and Hinata have reached them and are now prepared to fight back.

"And you heard me; what if I don't!" Kankuro's threat brings a little fear into Konohamaru's eyes. Naruto then places his right hand on the Twilight Star, which is attached to his left hip. "Oh? You wanna try me?"

Before he could do anything, a rock is shot out from nowhere and impacts his hand. This causes him to lose grip over Konohamaru and drop him. Naruto takes this as a chance to move in for the kill, by drawing the Twilight Star. Dark fumes gather around it, and he suddenly disappears from sight.

Less than a nanosecond afterwards a gust of wind blows by Temari and Kankuro, and Konohamaru disappears. Naruto can now be seen a couple of feet away from them with the kid in his left arm. In his right hand is a black katana reaching 64 inches overall with the hilt being 11. The hilt of the sword is black with a red diamond-shape pattern on the side. "The Gravity Sword; Kuro Getsuga. It's a katana that summons invisible dark fumes over the user to grant him immunity over gravity. With it I feel like I'm on the moon."

"What's this guy's problem?" grumbles Kankuro as he grabs the item on his back. He then turns his attention to the trees, and sees Sasuke hidden within them.

"You want to try that again? If you want to start a war, you'll have to begin with me." He says in a cool tone. Temari blushes a bit as she listens to him.

But then both of them pause in fear as they realize someone else's presence. Beside Sasuke is a person with short red hair and tan skin. He is hanging upside down and has a gourd on his back. "Kankuro, Temari, what are you two doing?"

Sasuke gasps when he hears his voice, and looks beside him to see the ninja. 'Where the hell did he come from?'

"Sorry, little bro. I was just saying hi to the Konoha ninjas." Kankuro says to his little brother. It is at this moment that Naruto realizes that he's wearing the symbol for the village hidden within the sand, Sunagakure.

"What are you three doing on Konoha grounds? Are you here for the Chunin Exams?" Sakura asks the three.

"Yes we are. We'll be participating." Temari says, showing her pass for traveling to Konoha.

The red haired ninja in the trees disappears in a flurry of sand and reappears beside his siblings. Sasuke jumps out from the tree and lands beside them. The sand user looks at Sasuke, and asks, "What is your name?"

"Sasuke Uchiha. What's yours?" – Sasuke

"Gaara of the Desert. I'll be seeing you again." He says, before disappearing with his siblings in a gust of sand. Naruto tenses up slightly as he watches them go.

"And yet another bunch of weirdoes show up." Sakura mutters quietly.

"Naruto! That was awesome! What was that sword you used?" Konohamaru asks his orange savior.

"Calm down! I'll tell you about it later!" Naruto says to the little scrap.

Hinata smiles as she watches her love release his tension. Sasuke eyes the blond's sword with interest, knowing how powerful it was when he used it during practice sessions. 'That sword…it holds much power in it…'

Outside of Konoha…

"How far do you think we need to go?" Ao, the Mizukage's most trusted bodyguard, is with Chojuro as they ride an enlarged crocodile towards the land of fire. On top of the reptile's snot is the Mizukage herself, Mei Terumi, with a small frown on her face.

"It won't take long on Cocytus. The main problem isn't that though," She says, looking back at the set of genin teams, one of which has Haku within it. "I don't know how Naruto will take the information of his mentor gone."

"So what? If he's dead then he's dead! We'll make arrangements and manage to tell him personally." Ao says to himself.

'Arrangements, to marriage?' Mei repeats in her head. Of course she completely misheard what he said, although his real words would have been crueler. She turns to Ao, and glares menacingly at him, but smiling.


	5. The Devil Curse of Orochimaru

Disclaimer: I do not own this franchise or the challenge. Masashi Kishimoto and Challenger do.

Omake-

Sasuke walks up the stairs of his home up to his room, hoping to put himself to bed after a long day of trouble. "Man, I can't wait to fall asleep in my cozy bed."

He comes before his room and opens the door, and then flicks on the light switch. The moment he does Naruto rises up from his bed and yells, "TURN OFF THAT LIGHT!"

"Oops, sorry!" Sasuke quickly turns off the light, knowing how rude it would be to wake someone up while they were sleeping. But then he realizes something, and walks into the darkness of his room. "Naruto, what are you doing in my home?"

"It's part of my 'How to piss off an Uchiha' novel! I need to do lots of things that would make a member of your family mad, and then record it for use later." Naruto explains to his friend.

Now, Naruto isn't really good at seeing in the dark, but even he could tell the Uchiha is growing madder than a bull that sees a waving red flag. Some sounds go off in the room, heavily implying that Naruto is getting the ever-loving crap kicked out of him, and soon a badly bruised Naruto rushes down the steps and out the door. Sasuke follows him, in a blind rage, and makes sure he stays out.

After locking the door the tired Uchiha climbs back up the steps, even more exhausted than before. 'I really need that sleep now.'

He flicks the light on.

"TURN OFF THAT LIGHT!" – Naruto

_**Chapter 5: The Devil Curse of Orochimaru**_

After the events of yesterday afternoon, where Naruto and his team met the Suna team partaking in the Chunin Exams, Kakashi brought them together and told them he implanted them into the same exams as well. All three ninjas agreed to take part, and today they now enter the exam building.

By the time they reach the second floor, or what looks like an extra second floor, they could spot a group of ninjas bickering with one another. Sakura notices something up about the number two, and could tell there is a genjutsu on it. "Someone placed a genjutsu on the floor number. This must be the third floor."

"Shut up, bitch! Nobody asked you!" One of the ruder ninja shouts at her. He pushes a guy in green tights aside to get closer to her.

"I was just saying what I saw. I thought that-"

"Who cares about what you think?" A second one says.

"We do!" Naruto states.

"I would like for you to apologize to her, or else." Sasuke threatens, a smirk appearing on his face.

"Or else what, ya big loser?" The first one then charges at Sasuke, who charges in head first. But then someone comes up between them and grabs both their legs, which they were about to attack with. They could both see that it was the guy who got knocked before. "What the hell?"

"Lee! You got over-excited again!" A girl with meatballs in her hair shouts at him. She has a pink shirt, a pair of dark green pants, and she seems to be of Chinese descent, like Lee and another person.

"Sorry, Tenten! I couldn't help myself." Lee says, cursing his hyperactivity. He wanted to hold back his power so no one would know what he's capable of. Lee releases Sasuke and the other guy and they each go their separate ways.

"Hey, you!" A guy with long brown hair and white eyes calls out to Sasuke. "What's your name?"

"Sasuke Uchiha." He answers.

"Neji Hyuga. I expect to see some good out of you." He says to the last Uchiha.

'Sheesh, what's with these people? They notice Sasuke but not me?' Naruto complains in his mind.

Team 7 enters the third floor room, which leads into a gymnasium. Before they could go any further, someone shouts out, "You there, girl!"

The trio looks up to see the guy in green from earlier leaping down towards them. "I am Rock Lee, the Handsome Devil of the Hidden Leaf! Please, be my girlfriend!"

Sakura takes a single look at him, going up and down, and after analyzing his bowl-cut hairdo she calmly says, "No."

As he gets shut down, Lee collapses onto his face in shame. 'Rejected in three seconds flat!'

Naruto laughs at his predicament. 'I'm glad I don't have to deal with that!'

Lee stands back up to his feet and turns his attention to the broody ninja. "You there, Sasuke Uchiha! I challenge you to a one on one battle!"

"Me? Please, you would stand no chance." Sasuke says, crossing his arms over his chest. "Besides, beating me up won't impress Sakura."

Regardless, Lee prepares himself to battle against the Uchiha. But Naruto stands in between him and proudly states, "No way! If you want to battle Sasuke, you have to go through me!"

"Don't get in my way! I only wish to fight a worthy opponent!" Lee says to Naruto in a loud voice.

"Oh yeah!" Naruto lunges forward and throws a punch to Lee's face, but he blocks with his right hand. He then kicks the orange ninja and knocks him into a wall. He gets himself out and shouts, "Wait!"

"Didn't you hear what I said? My fight is only with the proud bloodline genius!" Lee states. He then charges at Sasuke, who gets into a defensive stance.

Back with Naruto, his entire body charges with electricity, his anger rising and his power responding. "DIDN'T I TELL YOU TO WAIT!"

"What?" Lee looks back at Naruto, but doesn't see him anywhere.

"Rairyu no," Naruto tackles Lee with a full on head butt, and then lifts his head up. This rockets the taijutsu specialist into the air, crashing into the ceiling. "Ikazuchi Toppa! (Thunder Topper)"

"Wow! He was so fast!" Sakura says in amazement. She even blushes a bit at how cool he was.

"I could follow him; Naruto charged electricity around his entire body, and used the added power boost to rocket himself at Lee." Sasuke explains, having good eyesight to allow him the perfect view of the battle. 'That's the power of his bloodline, but why couldn't he use that power back in school?'

Naruto grins as he punches his knuckles, ecstatic about fighting against such a strong person. With all his training in trying to control his lightning energy for battle he discovered some things about his bloodline; charging any portion of his body with chakra would result in it turning immediately into electricity. Only when he's using a non-Lightning element jutsu, or trying to stick to walls, will he be able to use normal chakra.

"Konoha Senpuu! (Whirlwind)" Lee shouts, coming down from the ceiling towards Naruto. He then performs a lot of combo attacks at him, too fast for even the lightning dragon to dodge effectively.

"Rairyu no Kaminari Punch!" Naruto charges electricity to his fist, and prepares to punch out his lights. But Lee ducks below Naruto, dodging the blow. He then mounts a powerful kick to his chin, knocking him high up in the sky. Naruto looks down, hoping to find his opponent.

"Now, for the finishing blow." Lee says, preparing to use his finishing move on Naruto. But before he could Naruto draws the Twilight Star, transforming it into Gilgamesh. Lee wraps the ninja up in bandages, preventing him from trying any escape tactics on him.

But before he could touch him and finish him off, an explosion goes off between them. Naruto's body is set free from the bandages, and he is now facing Lee. "Now it's your turn!"

Naruto slams his sword down on Lee's body, which blocks with his arms, and receives an explosion that knocks him to the ground. Naruto lands far off away from him, his sword reverting back into its sealed state. Both Sakura and Sasuke stare at the battlefield in shock.

'I couldn't follow those moves just now…who is this guy?' Sasuke thinks in frustration.

'Naruto was so cool! He broke out of his hold even though he damaged himself.' Sakura says in her mind as she thinks over what she saw.

Lee and Naruto can both be seen breathing slow and hard, a little tired from their little brawl just now. "Impressive. I see there are two people I need to worry about on this team."

"Yeah. You're pretty good yourself." Naruto says to the impressive fighter.

"What's your name?" Lee asks Naruto, and for once a smile comes up on his face; it's been a while since anyone's asked for his name.

"Naruto Uzumaki." He replies proudly.

"I hope to see you again Naruto-kun. You as well, Sasuke." Lee says, before disappearing in a flash to meet up with his peers.

"Well, that was entertaining. Who knew that guy could fight?" Sasuke states, a small smile present on his face.

"He didn't use any jutsu or chakra in that fight." Naruto says, bringing a confused look on both of their faces. He seems to have a sad tone in his voice. "I had to use the Twilight Star and my bloodline to match his speed and strength, and the fight ended up in a draw. Plus those bandages on his arms show how much physical training he's put himself through. He reminds me so much of Manabu."

'You could tell during that whole fight?' – Sasuke

'He's still worried about him…' – Sakura

"We should get going. The exams could begin at any minute." Naruto says, his normal cheerful tone returning.

Like he said, they continue past the gym into the next room, to find their sensei Kakashi waiting for them there. "So, you all decided to come."

"Of course we did!" Sakura states proudly, to her mentor.

"Why wouldn't we?" – Sasuke

"As a team, we do everything today! Well, mostly everything." – Naruto

"Well good. Just remember, this is the part of your lives where your friendship will be put to the test. Some of you may have to eventually fight against one another." Kakashi says to them, bringing a tense moment between each of them. "It's in this point in your life that you will actually have to try your best to survive."

'It's that dangerous?' – All three of them

"Well, I guess I can't say anymore than this. Good luck, all of you." He says, before disappearing in a flash.

Sasuke and Naruto grab the twin door handles and open it. Inside they could see what seemed like 60 ninjas inside. Among them are the other most talented graduates of the academy. All together those ninjas were the Rookie 9.

'Naruto-kun is here…' Hinata says in her thoughts, a blush rising up to her face.

"Well, what do you know? Sasuke, Naruto and Sakura are here as well." Kiba says, a smirk popping up on his face.

"This should be interesting." Shino says, looking at them through his glasses.

"Sasuke is here!" Ino shouts, much to the dismay of everyone else.

"So they got in as well?" Shikamaru figures.

Choji didn't say anything. He was busy eating his snacks.

"It's Naruto." Haku says, waving to them as Team 7 enters the room. Naruto is the first to say hello to him, while Sasuke scuffs. He may still be mad about the near-death thing.

Including them, Naruto seems to notice a guy with silver hair and glasses as a part of a team from Grass. He also spots another team, and his attention perks up when he notices that they're from Kumo. Despite not being to Kumo he remembers Hinata telling him during his training with her, where she was kidnapped by one when she was young.

Before anyone could continue chatting with one another, a man pops up among a bunch of smoke. This guy has a blue cap over his head extending from his headband, implying he's bald, a black jacket with a long coattail, and a jonin outfit on underneath. Beside him are a couple of other ninjas who would function as examiners.

"Alright, everyone shut up! It is time to begin the first part of the Chunin Exams; Written Examination!"

At that, Naruto freezes up in fear. 'Written?' When they start passing out slips of paper Naruto screams in fear, although it was inside his head so no one heard it.

40 minutes into the exam and Naruto is still sweating like a pig, and that goes well with him thinking like a pig and eating like a pig; good thing he isn't Homer Simpson or you'd have to worry about the smell too. He hasn't written a single thing on his paper, except his name, and after reading the questions he realized he couldn't solve any of them.

He looked around the room and realizes that some of the others were doing pretty well; Sasuke has used his Sharingan to cheat, while Sakura solved the questions with her own intelligence. If he doesn't get the questions done he'll fail, and with him the rest of his team goes as well.

'Come on, Naruto! Think! You can't solve these questions yourself, so you have to cheat! In-fact, now that I think about it, Sakura is the only one not cheating.' Naruto figures in his mind, noticing some weird things going on around him. He could see that Gaara guy using sand to collect data, somehow, that Neji guy was using his doujutsu, the Byakugan, to check other people's answers, Shino somehow summoned an insect to check his opponent's answers, even Haku has the power of his ice mirror, which he created above in the ceiling to read over a few answers. 'Everyone else has useful powers in gathering information, and all I can do is shock things…wait…'

Naruto holds up his right hand, and brings up a tiny amount of electricity in between his index and middle fingers. 'That's right, I remember Sakura telling me something before…the human brain is like an electromagnetic organ. It receives and sends out electric pulses whenever it pertains to the body, and even thoughts themselves are made up of them. So maybe…if I concentrate enough,'

Naruto presses his hands to each side of his head, as a sort of purple electricity pulsates through his fingers. He then picks up something. 'Oh no! Naruto, don't give up! You can get past this!'

He looks to his right and sees Hinata, who turns away blushing when she sees him. After recognizing the thought voice is the same as hers, he smiles a bit at her. 'Okay, next!'

'This test is so easy, now for some music! Answer Must Be Somewhere! Watashi no koto dareyori mo shitteru! Watashi dakara shinjirareru!' Naruto looks around for whoever could have put in that thought, but he couldn't find that person.

'Soon, we will take over the humans who sit on us! All hail the roaches!' Naruto blinks a bit, and then his right eyebrow lifts up when he hears that last part.

'I wonder, how long it'll take them to figure out this part of the test is only for knowledge gathering and willpower, and not knowledge? Oh well. They'll never get the final question, a do or die decision. Of course, I'll trick them into thinking that. The ones who don't leave will get to pass onto the next part.' Naruto smirks to himself as he takes his hands off his head. He could tell that thought belonged to Ibiki.

Ibiki himself places his hand on his head. A proctor looks up at him and asks, "Something wrong?"

"It feels as if someone read my mind." Ibiki says to him, not noticing the grin on Naruto's face.

"Hinata," Naruto whispers to his friend beside him. She blushes a bit as she looks at him, wondering why he would say something to her. "You don't have to do the questions. They aren't necessary."

"They're not?" She asks him in a tiny meek voice.

"Yes. I am sure. We just need to deal with the last question, so just follow my lead." He whispers, and the both of them smile at one another.

"Okay." She says to him, agreeing with the love of her life.

"Alright, time's up! Now to give out the final question." Ibiki shouts, gathering everyone's attention. The ones who didn't get caught cheating raise their heads up to him. "The final question shall be a choice for you all; you choose to take it, or don't take it. If you don't, you will be disqualified from the exams and take it again in another six months. But if you do choose to take it, and fail, you and your team will lose the chance to take the Chunin Exams forever."

At this everyone, or mostly everyone, gasp in shock when they hear this. Naruto smiles confidently as he hears him, and Hinata grins a little when he brings it up. Tenten raises her hand and shouts, "But that's not fair! Others have taken this test before and they've never gone through something like that!"

"Well you lot are just unlucky that you got me as your proctor!" Ibiki shouts at her. As she backs down into her seat, other lesser teams forfeit and leave. Haku looks to his comrades and shakes his head at them, prompting them to stay in the exam. Sakura looks at Naruto from behind, and slowly begins to raise her hand. "I can agree on why some of you may be scared. Only the bravest of men deserve the right-"

"Quit your yakking and give it out! We don't want to wait here forever!" Naruto shouts, a grin present on his face. This stops Sakura from giving up, and a sense of confidence erupts within her. Ibiki stares up at the ninja, only having to do so because he was sitting in a chair that made him higher than him. "Even if I fail this question, it won't matter! I'll become Hokage no matter what happens!"

"Is that so?" Ibiki questions him in a strong, intimidating voice. Naruto didn't lose confidence, already knowing what he is planning. The others around him started to regain their confidence and decided to stay. 'He's implanted his confidence into all the others as well.'

"Fine then…congratulations, you all pass!" He says to them all. This catches them all by surprise, except Naruto who read his mind and some of the quieter ninjas.

Elsewhere…

"So, I have to share my fiancé with other women?" The Mizukage asks the Hokage, her sitting before his desk. Her two bodyguards are present on the outside of the room.

"Yes, that is the general thing. We're sorry we didn't exclude this with you earlier; had we known Naruto would awaken Kushina's bloodline in the first place we would have told you of that before he was born." The Hokage says to her, bringing her to close her visible eye shut. "We'll of course let him choose the three girls."

"I'm not sure I can share him with just anyone. I have to know if they're good people." Mei says to the old man. "Also, will there be any other Kages present during the exams?"

"Only the Kazekage. But that's not what's disturbing me." The Hokage states, his mind going off into another thought. "It's the genin team from Otogakure. There's something about them, something familiar…"

"Is there something wrong about them?" – Mei

"I don't know…there's something about them that reminds me of something…from the past…" – Sarutobi

Back To Action…

"Welcome to the Forest of Death!" Anko Mitarashi shouts to the genin that past, who are all now outside the exam building before a huge forest. Thing is about this forest, is that there's a giant fence around it, preventing people from entering inside.

After Ibiki explained to everyone about the main purpose of the test, a scantily clad woman with violet hair done up in a spiky ponytail popped up. She wasn't that scantily clad though, but she was wearing only a chain mail body shirt and nothing over it, so if you got lucky you could see her boobs. She also has pupil-less light brown eyes, a tan overcoat on, and a dark orange skirt. There's also the forehead protector, shin guards and a small pendant.

After complaining about how many people were left behind, she led them all outside the building. She then brought them to this closed off forest, where the next part of the exams will begin. This place is actually called Battle Training Zone 44, but it was so dangerous that they closed it up, using it for occasions such as this.

"Here, each team will be given one of two scrolls, an Earth Scroll and a Heaven Scroll. The goal of this test is to capture and procure the opposite scroll you received. Afterwards you have to head to the finish line with both the scrolls, and that should qualify you to continue." She explains to the genin before her. Anko then looks over all the ninjas, and sighs after finishing her count. 'There's too many of them. Oh well, this should cut them down.'

Naruto yawns a bit as he listens to the woman. This grabs the proctor's attention as she disappears in a swirl of leaves. She reappears before the lightning ninja and glares him in the eyes. "Hey, am I boring you?"

"No ma'am! It's just…long day!" He replies to her. He hasn't eaten even before fighting against Lee, and after all that mental thinking for that test, including the electric magnetic power he used to read minds and all the chakra he wasted into it, it is only natural that he gets a little tired. He would get over it once he eats some electricity, or ramen.

"Well, you better bring out some extra energy if you want to survive this portion of the test. Of course, I don't mind if your blood gets splattered first…" She says to him, a devious smirk appearing on his face. Naruto could feel himself shrinking in size as she licks her lips while staring at him.

'That chick is nuts!' – Sakura

"So, without further adieu let us begin the 2nd part!" She says in a cheerful voice. She then walks away from Naruto, who breathes a sigh of relief with her gone. "Oh yeah, one more thing," Some of her assistants come before the genin with slips of paper. "Each team will receive these slips of paper. In order to receive a scroll for your team each member has to sign them."

"What are they?" Hinata asks Anko, taking a slip from one of them.

"They are release forms. These are to make sure we are not responsible for anyone dying or anything." She tells the Hyuga Heiress. Anko then notices the look of fear on her face. "Yes, it's that dangerous. It's so hazardous that we can't guarantee the safety of anyone who steps in."

"So you're saying what we do to anyone we find in there is perfectly legal and won't be held against us?" Haku asks, grabbing the sexy woman's attention.

'Oh wow, what a cute boy!' "That is correct." She says to the ice using ninja. "After everyone signs the papers we'll begin."

After her words were spoken, the ninjas each spread out. Naruto leaves his group to meet up with Haku and his team. When he reaches them he sees the two others with him. One of them is a girl with short brown hair and a forehead protector over her head. She has on a green mesh suit and blue ninja sandals, with a short katana strapped onto her left hip. The other is a male with purple raven hair, and a blue jumpsuit on. He also has a scythe attached to his back and his forehead protector around his waist.

"Haku! How's it going?" Naruto asks his friend. Haku's friends look at him and notice something about the guy.

"Hey, are you Naruto Uzumaki? Haku-chan here talks about you a lot!" The female says to him.

"He does?" Naruto turns to his friend Haku and smiles. "You two got names?"

"Sure. I'm Orin! This here is Kenta." She says, pointing to the other male member of the team. "He can't talk since his tongue got cut out some time ago."

"Ew! Hey, you doing alright?" The blond asks the guy. He nods at him, bringing Naruto to chuckle a bit.

"Naruto, hurry up and sign your name!" Sakura calls out to the orange ninja. Naruto looks back and sees the pink haired girl.

"Okay! I'll be right there!" He says to her, hurrying up to rejoin his other friends. "Good luck in the exams, Haku!"

Naruto meets up with his teammates and signs his name up so they could receive their scroll. After he writes his name in they get the Heaven Scroll, and are assigned a position on one edge of the forest to go into. This goes on for the others until everyone is put into position. After five minutes of waiting, their respective gates open up, and each team dashes into the forest.

An hour has past since their travel into the forest of death. Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke have come before a giant tree where Lucas lives. All around them they could hear nothing but silence, except there was the occasional screaming from other teams.

"This place really is dangerous!" Sakura says, noticing all the dangerous eyes glaring at them from behind bushes. One of the eyes attacks another set of eyes, and then turn their attention to Naruto and his team.

"Oh please! That cat we kept on rescuing was dangerous!" Naruto answers back, lying beside a tree out of boredom. "If we run into another team then we might run into trouble."

Sasuke looks around the surrounding area, his expression tensing up. 'Someone's following us, but he's kept himself hidden so far. We need to flush him out.'

"I have an idea though." The Uchiha says to the others. This grabs their attention and causes them to look at him. "We can make up a codeword. Now listen carefully, when one of us asks the ninja song, here is what we say; a large amount of loud enemies is the friend of the shinobi, hide and remain silent. A shinobi must understand the proper time, when the enemy is tired and ill prepared."

"I got it!" Sakura says, having memorized it in one sitting.

Naruto's brain slowly sizzles as he tries to memorize the words. But as hard as he tried he forgot them. "Um, can you repeat that?"

"Naruto, what's wrong with you? I remembered that on the first try!" Sakura shouts at him.

"I'll hold onto the scroll." Sasuke says as he holds up the Heaven Scroll. He then places it in his backpack.

At that moment Naruto's nose flares up, and he looks behind him. "There's something up over there."

"What?" Suddenly a huge shockwave blasts them away. The ninjas each jump out of the way to avoid it, which ruins the portion of the forest they were in.

Sasuke leaps out from a tree after avoiding the sound attack. He looks around for whoever would have did this, but when he notices no one is around he sighs. Where could that blast have come from?

"Naruto! Sasuke!" Sakura comes out from behind a tree, looking around for her two teammates. She sees Sasuke and breathes a sigh of relief. "Oh, Sasuke!"

"The nin song; what is it?" Sasuke questions her in a threatening voice. He holds out a kunai so she would get the point.

"A large amount of loud enemies is the friend of the shinobi, hide and remain silent. A shinobi must understand the proper time, when the enemy is tired and ill prepared." She replies, and Sasuke lowers his weapon.

"Good. Now, where to find that thunder idiot…" Sasuke says, looking around for his other teammate.

"Oww… You guys alright?" Naruto shouts out, coming up from behind them.

"Naruto, wait! The codeword!" Sakura says to him.

"Yeah, yeah, I know… A large amount of loud enemies is the friend of the shinobi, hide and remain silent. A shinobi must understand the proper time, when the enemy is tired and ill prepared." He says, answering the codeword perfectly. Sakura breathes a sigh of relief and lowers her guard, while Sasuke smirks.

"Very good." Sasuke throws a kunai at Naruto without warning. The ninja falls to the ground trying to dodge. Sakura and Naruto stare at the guy in shock. "So, it's someone who's good enough to dodge my attacks."

"Hold up! Naruto here said the words right!" Sakura says to the Uchiha.

'Naruto' smirks deviously as he glares at them, and suddenly a poof of smoke surrounds him. He is now shown to be a tall, pale woman with a light purple garb over dark violet pants and a straw hat over his head. "So, you knew all along that I was following you, right?"

"A while ago I noticed we were being followed by someone. I had a feeling he would try to capture one of us and get to us." He says, taking out a kunai as he prepares for battle. "So I made a code like that because I figured you would eavesdrop on our conversation. There's no way an idiot like him would remember that."

"I see… neither tired nor ill prepared, are we? This will be more fun than I thought." She says, taking off her straw hat to reveal herself to be a ninja from Grass.

Elsewhere Naruto picks himself up from the ground, holding his rattling head in pain. The damage from that sound attack can be seen on his jumpsuit, which has opened up to reveal his blue shirt underneath, and the ground and trees it hit. "AH! What the hell was that sound wave?"

Suddenly he hears a loud hissing noise. Looking up he sees what appears to be a giant snake. It opens its mouth and lunges at him, who dodges its bite. The serpent's tail then wraps him up, since he didn't see it behind him. "Hey! Let go!"

The snake then opens its mouth and swallows Naruto whole. A huge lump slowly slides down its belly as it does. Naruto's mumbling could be heard in the snake's body. The serpent slithers away, its victim stuck in its belly.


	6. We Are Venom! Sasuke's Ten Swords

_**Naruto and the Water Princess**_

Disclaimer: Do I even need to say it? Just check back in the last few chapters!

Kenshin: There will be no omake this time. There was suppose to be one to make fun of the yaoi pairing Naruto and Sasuke, but not even TCM wanted to be a part of it.

Yusei: What was it about?

Kenshin: Well, Naruto confesses his feelings for Sasuke. Sasuke does the same and they get naked in public. But before they could continue Sasuke opens his eyes and wakes up, showing it's all a dream. He then heads for Naruto's home and kicks him and his bed out the window, creating a giant hole in the wall, screaming and telling him to stay out of his dreams. Of course, Naruto has no idea what's going on and falls back asleep.

Yusei: Well, that sounds a little funny. But yeah, it seems a bit much. What's in today's chapter?

Kenshin: Naruto meets Team Lightning, aka Team Samui, and frees himself from the snake. There is also an item, which plays a significant role to the plot, dropped in the title.

_**Chapter 6: We Are Venom! Sasuke's 10 Swords!

* * *

**_

In the darkness of the forest, a trio of ninjas land on top of a tree. The first one is a dark skinned guy with spiky white hair. He sports a flap jacket and black clothes with the Forehead Protector of Kumo on his head. He has on his back a silver and red-sheathed sword. Next to him is a dark skinned female with red hair that reaches to the back of her neck. She also has on similar clothes to the first guy and a katana strapped behind her.

The last one is a blond woman, a little taller than the first girl, with her hair cut to resemble a cardboard box with features. She has a black kosode with a fishnet mesh suit underneath and a white strap around her stomach. The most noticeable thing about her, to most males anyway, are her well-endowed breasts.

"An hour and 8 minutes, and still no sign of other teams. And now my back aches are going on again." Says the blond woman, stretching her back and massaging her shoulders.

"Eh, it's probably because of your boobs, taichou! Those things look like they could bust out at any minute!" The white haired male states. "It's no wonder your back hurts all the time…good thing for Karui she won't have to deal with that."

"HEY! Are you calling me flat?!" The red head yells at him.

"I think I've found the source of my pain." The blond girl sighs as she walks further from the group. She stops when she spots a giant snake slithering towards her.

"About time some action dropped by! We get a giant snake!" Karui yells out, drawing her katana and preparing for battle.

Before the snake could make any action, the blond woman blinks a bit as she notices something strange about it. The snake snarls and whips its head about, spitting out saliva as it does. Then suddenly the creature is enveloped with electricity, lighting that entire portion of the forest. Its body then explodes from within, its guts falling on the big boobed woman and her teammates.

"Ew! I'm covered in its shit-gunk!" Karui complains, wiping some of the stuff off her face.

"You know, you shouldn't be cursing so much. It could rub off on others, the order of society could collapse, and people may end up primitive and stupid!" The male ninja says to the girl.

"Shut up, Omoi! That's completely stupid!" Karui says to the guy.

"Be quiet. There's something moving." The unnamed woman says to the two.

She is right, for a lump of the snake's body seems to be moving a bit. The lump then stands up tall, revealing it to be Naruto. He shouts out in a triumphant roar after freeing himself, scaring Karui and Omoi a little out of their skins. "Yeah! Take that, snake! No serpent can keep me down!"

"Who's he?" Karui asks no one in particular.

"He looks to be that guy from earlier who yelled during the written exams, and got that chick from earlier up in his face." Omoi says, remembering him from his voice alone.

"He may have one of the scrolls we need. Let's mount our attack." The taller woman says as her right hand charges with electricity.

"Let's see…that snake couldn't have taken me too far…" Naruto says as he looks around. He didn't even notice the other ninja team eying him, until the team leader made her move. He turns around to face him and spots an arm covered in electricity coming straight at him. He receives the blow to the face, getting knocked into a tree. The electricity didn't hurt him, but the physical strength of the woman itself seems to be enough. "Ah! What was that?"

"That's strange; that Lariat was suppose to take his head off." She says, looking at the still living ninja in the tree.

"If he has a scroll then that makes our trip here all the more easier." Omoi says as he draws his katana.

"I guess they're another team after us. Aw, I don't have time for this." Naruto mumbles to himself. He draws the Twilight Star and injects chakra to his feet. As the two swordsmen, and women, come after him he runs down the side of the tree to evade them. The taller woman cuts him off and prepares to try again. He transforms his weapon into Gilgamesh, and slams the sword into the tree. This produces an explosion that cuts the tree in half. With this attack Karui and Omoi lose their balance and jump off the falling top portion of the tree.

"You won't get away! Lariat!" She says, leaping upward towards Naruto.

"Oo, a recharge!" Naruto opens his mouth and bites down on her bicep. While she blushes at the roughness he did to her arm, he eats the electricity and heals himself. After eating all of it he slams Gilgamesh into her stomach area, blowing her back to the ground. The explosion also ruins the part of the tree he is on, forcing him to land on the ground.

"Just who are you?" The blond asks him in a demanding and cold voice. Her teammates come up behind him for a sneak attack.

"That's my line! I'm busy!" Naruto's sword transforms into Kuro Getsuga. He then turns to the other two behind him and swings at them diagonally. The invisible dark fumes wrap around the blade and release upon swing. The fume morphs into a shockwave of condensed gravitational energy and knocks them back into the tree.

Naruto quickly ducks out of the way of a punch from the leader, and turns his attention back to her. She continues with her vicious assault, pissing off the lightning ninja. 'I've got to knock her out with her own medicine! I don't know where I have to touch her, but I've got to stun her somehow!'

While dodging her punches Naruto reaches his arms out to grab her shoulders, which release a small amount of electricity. But instead of touching her shoulders his hands accidentally grip her breasts. He blushes out of embarrassment from touching such an indecent spot, and she blushes from the tight grip he places on her. The electricity he surges through her body also shocks her, but only enough to cause a little bit of smoke to emit from her. She falls to the ground backwards, her body shaking a bit.

"Samui-san!" Karui shouts, dashing at Naruto to cut him in two. Naruto charges lightning to his feet and rockets himself into the air. With the loss of gravity from the Gravity Sword being active he really took off like a rocket! That speed would make it impossible for them to catch up with him now.

"Samui-taichou, are you okay?!" She asks the unconscious woman. Samui stops shaking about and regains her senses.

"That boy…he grabbed my breasts." She says, remembering the events that happened just know clearly. "He initiated the Kikon Process of my family."

"He what?" – Omoi/Karui

Naruto rummages through the forest, running along the ground as he escapes from the team from Kumo. If he went through the trees, he would have to deal with the animals hiding in the trees, including ninjas. As he continues, he notices a couple of eyes following him. He could smell it too.

Suddenly, the creature leaps out from the bushes to attack him. He makes a small leap into the air, but with Kuro Getsuga active it is more of an athlete jump. He looks down at what attacked him, and sees a rabid wolf. More of them jump out from the bushes, and attack Naruto in attempts to devour him.

"Don't bite off more than you can chew!" Naruto says in a confident voice. His free fist charges with electricity as he prepares to take them out.

-- During the same time Naruto freed himself

"Get away!" Sasuke shouts, throwing a flurry of shuriken and kunai. They go into a giant snake's mouth, killing it and putting it down for good.

Sakura gasps as she watches her teammate fight back in fear. Things have started going the wrong way ever since they ran into that ninja from grass. She unleashed a genjutsu on them that made them see their own deaths, and it scared them into paralysis. They tried running away from her, but then more of her snakes chased after and attacked them.

"You fools shouldn't relax for even a minute." The grass ninja says, busting up slowly from the snake's neck. "Prey must always do its best to escape, that is, in the presence of a predator."

Suddenly an ice spear stabs onto the branch the snake's body is on, grasping the grass ninja's attention. She looks up into the branches and sees Haku hanging upside down on a higher tree branch. He then says, "A predator can always turn into prey within a matter of seconds."

"It's Haku." Sakura says, remembering the ice user and his girly face.

"Sakura, Sasuke, is Naruto with you?" He asks them.

"No, he got separated from us a while back!" She explains to him.

Haku then turns his attention to the grass ninja. He could tell that there was something wrong about this person. Her skills seem to be too good for a normal genin. She also seems to be after Sasuke for some reason. Haku disappears in a flash and reappears before the grass ninja. "You're not here for a simple Chunin promotion are you?"

The ninja only chuckles with her mouth closed, her eyes overshadowed by the darkness of her straw hat.

Five Minutes Later…

Naruto plops to the ground in exhaustion after fighting off all the wolves that came after him. A few of them were killed by his electric punches and kicks, and the rest got scared off when a bit of his demon energy flared up. The ninja opens his eyes after resting for that small amount.

"I can smell my teammates…they're close by…" Naruto says, pulling himself back up to his feet. Ever since that mission in wave where he fought Haku and even when he fought against Kaizen he could tell his nose became more sensitive.

Suddenly someone crashes into a tree beside him, and it grabs his attention. He jumps up and catches the person in his arms, and sees that the person is Haku. "Haku!? Haku, what happened?! Speak to me!"

Haku slowly opens his eyes, trying to get use to the pain he received. There are tiny cuts on his face, a huge one on his chest, and a gaping bleeding hole on the left side of his abdomen. "Naruto…your friends…they need your help…"

"Sakura and Sasuke? What happened to them?" Naruto asks his friend. He could see the ninja is slowly losing his consciousness.

"An enemy ninja…too strong…" Haku warns him. He then closes his eyes and passes out, leaving his head to be cupped in his chest.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu." Naruto creates a shadow clone to leave Haku with, and heads into the direction Haku flew from.

"I sense power in your eyes that surpasses Itachi." The grass ninja says, staring at the Uchiha with interest. As she speaks her voice changes, resembling that of a man.

Sasuke's anger flares up when he hears the name of his older brother come up. "Who the hell are you?!"

"My name is Orochimaru. If you want to see me again then survive and pass this exam. I'll even leave you with two parting gifts." He says, a scroll popping in the palm of his right hand. "Of course, you'll need to defeat the Sound ninjas on their way here."

"What?! Why would we ever want anything to do with you?!" Sakura shouts at him.

"It won't go that way." After making a hand seal, Orochimaru's neck stretches out towards Sasuke. The paralysis technique that was inflicted upon him was still active, so he could not escape him. When the evil ninja reaches him he bites down on his neck.

Sakura watches this happen in horror, being unable to do anything about it. When the snake man removes his fangs, the image of three tomoes swirling together appears on his neck. Sasuke grabs hold of his neck, shaking a bit from the pain it brought upon him. Orochimaru then tosses a scroll towards them, having it land beside Sasuke.

Sakura approaches her teammate slowly and yells at Orochimaru, "What did you do to Sasuke?!"

"If you want him to live you will keep that scroll with him at all times." Orochimaru warns him, preparing to leave them alone.

Before he could leave, a bolt of lightning flies at him, who only has to ducks behind him to dodge it. He looks to his left and sees Naruto on a second tree branch. The ninja growls angrily as he stares at the evil ninja, holding the Twilight Star as Chromedread. Orochimaru smiles and chuckles sinisterly as he looks at Naruto.

"You! What did you do to my friends!?" Naruto yells at him in pure rage. A little surge of electricity pulsates throughout his body.

Sasuke makes another loud scream, until he finally passes out on Sakura's shoulder. "Naruto! Sasuke, he's in pain!"

"My, my, Naruto-kun…I hope my little snake friend didn't hurt you too badly." Orochimaru says to him, pulling a sword out from behind him. He then cuts his left thumb and spreads it on his right arm. This intersects with a marking on his arm.

"Shut up!" Naruto shouts, injecting electricity to his feet to make a mad dash for his target.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu." Orochimaru summons a snake and rides on top of its head.

Knowing how dangerous they are he leaps underneath a tree branch hanging over their heads. But then the snake's tail comes up behind him and slams him through the branch into another oak. He coughs up a large amount of blood from the impact of the strike and falls down to the ground due to gravity's laws. He loses his grip of the Twilight Star, and along with his consciousness it falls as well.

"NARUTO!" Sakura screams. She seems to be crying a little as she watches her closest friend get attacked by the snake. 'Please! Not you too! I don't want to lose you!'

"Go ahead and eat him too." Orochimaru says to his summon. The snake's tongue slips through its lips and prepares to wrap around him.

Naruto's eyes open back up, revealing them with the same red shade as when he fought against Haku. Electricity wraps around his right fist as he descends towards the snake. He then grabs the snake's tongue and pulls it towards him, allowing the ninja to slam a Kaminari Punch into the reptile's face. Naruto then releases the snake's tongue and kicks off its head. With this leap he jumps high up into the air, even better than when he normally uses lightning to charge his jumps.

"Naruto…what happened to him?" Sakura questions as she watches the fight.

Naruto reaches up and grasp his sword, landing upside down on a falling tree branch. Orochimaru performs a fire jutsu and blows it at him. He dodges at the last second, receiving most of the heat from the attack. The attack burns through his jumpsuit jacket and blue shirt, exposing his stomach. There everyone could see the seal that holds the fox in place. "Pathetic! Is that the best you can do?!"

'Those eyes, the seal, and that hair; there's no mistaking it. He's the Jinchuuriki of the Nine Tail Fox, which means he's also the Yondaime's little brat.' Orochimaru muses through in his mind.

"How about a little thunder shock?" Naruto charges electricity in his free hand as he lands on a tree branch still attached to a tree. This electricity though is blood red in color, as opposed to the normal blue and yellow ones he calls forth. As the snake comes towards him, he fires off a small bolt of red lightning at it, electrifying the snake and killing it. 'Where is this power coming from? Whatever, it's helping me! Who cares where it's coming from!?'

Unknown to Naruto, the real Orochimaru has left the top of his snake, leaving a clone in its place. With Naruto distracted five flames appear on the tip of his right hand's fingers. Sakura notices this and shouts, "Naruto! BEHIND YOU!!"

Naruto looks behind him and turns to face the enemy, when he hears the shout of, "Gogyo Fuin," and Orochimaru slams his right hand's fingers on the spot where his seal lies. As it takes effect Naruto's eyes return to normal, the red energy he was producing disappears and his eyes close shut. 'After 12 years, the demon and his chakra are fusing together. But for the moment, he's in the way!'

Orochimaru watches as Naruto's body collapses to the ground, and chuckles a little as he watches him. The ninja turns his attention to Sakura, who pales in fear when she becomes his target. He presses his left hand index finger up to his lips, and blows a shushing noise. He then dissolves into the wooden tree, leaving the genin behind all alone.

"Naruto!" Sakura calls out, lifting Sasuke over her shoulders. She jumps down to where he is and places Sasuke by his side. She then notices the scroll Orochimaru left behind, and returns to take it. 'Why am I taking it? He's just trying to trick us…and yet…I can't help but feel it might actually help him…'

--

Sakura carried her fallen teammates, and Haku, to a hidden spot parched underneath a tree. All three of her friends are placed face up and are facing up at the ceiling of the tree base they were under, wet washrags over their foreheads. Sakura herself is kneeing before them with a kunai held by both her hands.

"I have to stay awake…I can't let them get hurt anymore…" Sakura says to herself constantly. By the time she realizes it, daylight has shined down on her face. It seems she has stayed up the entire night, evidence being her tiredness and the bags under her eyes.

Suddenly she hears a couple of rustling in the bushes, and she holds up her weapon. Her body begins to shake as she begins to imagine who could be there. When the figure comes out, and it's revealed to be a squirrel, she sighs in relief as she now knows it's not a threat. But as the squirrel got closer she gasps and throws a kunai at it, scaring the poor creature away.

"Damn! You think she saw the explosive tag?" A figure in the bushes asks another person. Beside him is a girl with long black hair.

"No. There's something else. Let's get closer." The other guy says, revealing his face to be wrapped up like a mummy.

The trio of ninjas leaps out from the bushes and come before her. The girl says, "Have a good night, little girl?"

Sakura gasps when she sees the three ninjas before her, and pales as she sees the sound symbol on their forehead protectors. "Don't mess with me! You're the sound ninjas sent from Orochimaru aren't you?" When they hear the name of the powerful ninja the three ninjas flinch in surprise. "He put a weird mark on his neck…you did this to him…and now you want to fight him?!"

"…I wonder what that guy's thinking…regardless, we're taking him out." The mummy-faced ninja answers, stepping towards the kunai she threw. He then pulls up on the grass on the ground. "You threw a kunai at the squirrel we sent over here because it would activate a trap. That's why there's more grass here than any other spot."

'So, they sent a trap to me?' Sakura realizes, tensing up as she tries to think up a way to stop them. 'Then they must also have seen the real trap. I guess there's only one thing to do to protect them…'

"Now just sit back. This won't take long." He says, as the others join him. The sound ninjas then all leap over Sakura's 'trap' towards the girl and her friends.

'They fell for it!' Sakura brings herself back to reality and cuts an extremely thin wire beside her, that no one else saw. This releases a huge spiked log towards them.

This catches the sound ninjas by surprise, but their leader holds his right hand up to the log. A sound wave emits from his right hand and blows it to pieces. Sakura gasps when she sees that her plan failed, and backs further away to avoid them. "Further speaking, you have no real talent. Weaklings like you should stay out of our way!"

"Futon: Shinkugyoku! (Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere)" Before they could come any closer to her three small blasts of wind come and blows them away. The middle sound ninja kicks the other two away, and blocks with his gauntlet arm. After landing they take a good look at who shot that, and sees Haku has fired those bullets. "You guys should stay out of my way as well."

"Haku!" Sakura says happily, glad that her friend is okay. But her happiness turns into concern when she sees that he has fallen to his knees, grabbing hold of the wound on his abdomen. 'His wound is still messing with him…'

'These fools would be no problem if I could move, but this wound is too much for me!' The ice user complains in his mind. He then forms ice around his wound, hoping that would hold it for the moment. Haku jumps out from the tree they were hiding under, facing all three ninjas. "Sakura, are you okay? Who are these guys?"

"Yes, I'm fine. They're sound ninjas, the ones that grass ninja Orochimaru said would come for us." Sakura says to him, as the ice ninja prepares for battle.

"They are? So they're not here for the scroll?" Haku questions, thinking over why they could be trying to kill them.

"Thanks, for saving me." She says to him, looking down to the ground in shame.

"It's okay. After all, isn't that what friends are for? You're doing the same thing for us after all." Haku replies.

"I got this guy Dosu." The spiky haired one says, as he holds his hand out to him. Haku looks behind him, seeing Sakura and the others directly behind him. If this guy does fire an attack at him the others could get hurt. "Zankuuha! (Decapitating Air Wave)"

"Makyo Hyosho!" Haku develops an ice mirror and forms it in front of him, having it take the majority of the slicing sound wave. Due to Haku's own weakness from his battle with Orochimaru though the ice mirror shatters eventually and Haku is eventually cut up.

The female member of the group notices Sakura is distracted by their battle, and decides to sneak up on her. Haku sees her and prepares to battle her as well, but has to deal with the other guy first. He charges forward at the sound blower, taking out a senbon and forming ice around it to make a sword.

"Haku can't handle him with his injuries. I have to step in…" Sakura says to herself. She prepares to stand up and join him in the battle.

"Not so fast." The sound girl grabs hold of her hair and shoves her in the ground.

"Sakura?" Haku looks back to see his friend in trouble, but gets blown away by a second Zankuuha.

"Good job Kin! Now, get rid of her!" Haku's opponent says to the girl.

"Your hair feels nice to touch." Kin says to the girl, pulling the pink haired girl's hair roughly. "If you had spent enough time on your ninja skills and not your hair you'd probably be of some use!"

Sakura cries a bit as she gets shoved once more into the dirt, her nose bleeding from breaking. Haku looks back at the ninja harming Sakura, who couldn't move because of how weak she is. Haku couldn't move either because of that last decapitating air slice. Images flash through Sakura's mind as she realizes how right they were; she has been spending all of this time relying on her friends instead of doing any work herself. Even right now, Haku put his own health in jeopardy to try and save her, all because they're friends.

Sakura takes out a kunai and cuts her hair off, freeing herself from Kin's grasp. The pink haired girl separates the female sound ninja from her friends by kicking her in the stomach "I won't let you hurt my friends!"

"I've had enough of this bitch!" The air slicing ninja says, holding his hands out to her. He then fires a Zankuuha at her.

Sakura stands before her teammate's bodies, and receives the full force of the attack. Her body gets carved into from top to bottom from her attack, and coughs torrents of blood from the pain. 'I will…protect you both…Sasuke…and Naruto, especially you…'

"She's still standing, huh?" He says in a cocky voice. He then fires off a second one, slicing her up even more. "Fools like you don't deserve to live in reality!"

"That's quite enough." A female voice speaks, gathering everyone's attention to look high up into the trees. They could see it was Orin and Kenta, Haku's teammates for the exams. "Haku, are you okay?"

"Yeah." Haku says in a meek voice.

"Who are you?" Dosu asks the ninjas who just arrived.

"We're here for our leader over there. He's the ice ninja who's lying over there." Orin says to them. Her anger then flares up as she notices all the wounds on his body. "You put our friend through much pain; now you're gonna get it!"

'This chakra.' Kenta notices a large spike of chakra down on their level. He taps his partner's shoulder and motions to the tree Sakura's teammates are.

"You know what, forget it." She says, her anger lowering as she senses the energy as well.

"What? Are you afraid of us now?" Dosu taunts.

"No. Someone else will be bringing revenge upon you." She says, pointing to where Sasuke is.

Everyone turns to Sakura and gasps when they see what's happening. Sakura eventually turns around and gasps when she sees Sasuke has stood up. But even with her blurry vision and the pain on her body overloading her senses, she could see the marks on the left side of his body, where the mark Orochimaru left him reside. Sasuke looks down at his covered left arm, his Sharingan active.

"So, that really was the Curse Seal on him that girl said. But, to actually stand up after receiving half a day ago…" Dosu says silently so no one would hear him.

The Uchiha takes the time to look at his fallen friends, and his anger flares up as he notices the damage they all took. "Naruto, Sakura, Haku…they're all down…Sakura, who did this?"

Sakura seems to be too shocked at his appearance to answer him right away. So instead, the black haired male ninja from sound rudely states, "It was I! I'm totally calling it! I sliced them all up!"

"Oh really?" Sasuke turns his attention to the guy, more of the curse spreading across his body.

'There's so much chakra! How can this be?' – Dosu

"Except that orange kid. He was like that when we got here, but I'll gladly take punishment for that!" He says, preparing a jutsu by making hand signs.

"No, Zaku! Don't you get it!?" Dosu shouts at his partner.

Zaku holds his arms out to him and shouts, "Zankukyokuha! (Extreme Decapitating Air Wave)"

The attack is strong enough to cause an explosion that radiates throughout the entire jungle. Haku rolls over to a tree to escape, paling in shock as he sees his friends get blown to bits. The smoke clears up around the impact site, and Sasuke is nowhere to be seen. Zaku proudly states, "That takes care of that fool."

"What fool?" Sasuke asks, appearing behind Zaku. The foolish sound ninja turns around to see him, and gets smacked into a tree by his right fist. Naruto's unconscious body and Sakura can be seen behind him.

"Fast, and even while carrying those two." Dosu says, watching the battle with interest.

Zaku pulls himself back up to his feet, but doesn't see Sasuke anywhere in sight. The Uchiha is shown standing behind him, holding the scroll Orochimaru left him. He then quickly unravels it, darkness releasing from the ink on the paper. Sasuke then digs his hand into the darkness, grips something, and swings it at Zaku's left shoulder. The strike causes a powerful explosion, one even stronger than Naruto's Gilgamesh.

"Guwah!" Zaku coughs up blood from the impact of the strike and falls to the ground, gripping his shoulder. Apparently that one hit dislocated his shoulder.

Sasuke holds up his left hand, revealing a black double-edged sword with dull edges. On one side of the blade there is a sort of eyeball with orange veins seeping into the sword. 'I don't know what's going on, but there's a voice in my head. It's telling me what to do with this weapon…this sword can cause explosions upon impact.'

Sasuke then strikes Zaku's right shoulder, dislocating it as well. The sword then transforms into a black broadsword with purple sharp edges. The eye seems to still be on the same side. 'This sword, it has unimaginable power…'

The sword then vanishes into a poof of dark fumes, which seeps and absorbs into his left arm. The curse mark slowly recedes into his body as well, and the dark chakra around him disappears as well. He then falls to his knees, breathing a little slower than usual.

'Thank goodness, it's gone. We're saved for the moment.' Dosu says in his mind, as Kin runs over to Zaku and grabs him. She then heads over to Dosu, hiding behind him.

"Let's get out of here!" Kin whispers to Dosu.

Dosu digs behind him and pulls out an Earth Scroll. "Sasuke, it seems we cannot defeat you at this moment, with you and those other two around. So we'll leave this as a parting gift in exchange for our freedom."

"What?" Sasuke looks down at the scroll as Dosu rolls it over to them.

"This may seem inconvenient but there is something I have to find out." At Dosu's words Kin leaps away with Zaku in her arms. Before Dosu leaves he looks into the Uchiha's eyes and says, "In the event that we meet again in the exams however, we will neither run nor hide."

"Wait!" Haku yells, stopping Dosu for that moment. His attention turns to the Kiri ninja. "Why would Orochimaru choose Sasuke and do that to him? Who is this Orochimaru anyway?!"

"We know nothing. Our orders we just to kill the boy." Dosu says, and disappears to rejoin Kin.

'Orochimaru ordered them to kill Sasuke, and yet he went and gave him the Curse Seal. Maybe, he doesn't want him dead at all. He wanted to make him stronger! But why?' Haku questions them. His mind is thinking over all the things that have gone on.

"Haku!" Orin says as she and Kenta jump down to join him. She then digs into her medical kit and prepares to bandage his wounds.

"Sasuke, are you okay?" Sakura asks her teammate.

"Yeah. That chakra went away." He says, holding onto his left wrist.

"That's good...we're all okay then." She says calmly.

"N-No! Go away!" Naruto mumbles in his sleep. Sakura moves her focus off of Sasuke and turns to Naruto.

"Naruto? Naruto! Wake up!" Sakura says to her friend, pushing him to try and wake him up. As she does she receives a static shock, and quickly pulls back to look at her hands. She sees her hands got burnt from that static shock. 'What's going on? First Sasuke, now this!'

"Naruto?" Haku looks over to where his friend is, and notices that he's shaking and mumbling in his sleep.

_Inside Naruto's Mind...  
_

_Naruto is running down a dark hallway, and panting and tired as he looks back occasionally. Behind him he sees a giant monster crawling after him. This creature's body seems to be covered by darkness, but as he looks behind it he could spot ten tails swinging behind it._

_Naruto trips over a rock that sticks out too much, and falls flat on his face. He looks back and sees the creature reaching out for him. He also spots the single eye the monster has, which has four concentric circles and nine tomoes, three on the inner three rings. There's also the pupil in between it all._

_"You…you possess the heart and soul of the man who sealed me away!" It growls, almost grabbing hold of him._

_Before it could grab him five marks appear around the creature in the form of a chain. The kanji resembling fire, water, earth, wind and lightning can all be seal on the chains. With this around it a light illuminates around the creature, and exposes its appearance, if only a little. It looks like a dark orange fox, its eye has turned into red slit and split into two, and one of its tails have disappeared. A flash of lightning then zaps Naruto and pulls him up into the air._

_Outside of Naruto's Mind…_

Naruto opens his eyes and looks up, gasping frantically as he finally escapes the dream. "What…what was that about?"

"Naruto…" Sakura mutters as she touches him once again. She then begins to slowly cry when she realizes he's okay. She then hugs him, whispering, "You're okay!"

"Sakura…" Naruto looks at the pretty girl hugging him, and reaches his hands up to hug her back.

"Naruto, are you okay?" Sasuke asks him.

"Yeah…I'm fine. Is everyone o-Sakura!" Naruto then notices Sakura has plenty of wounds on her body after pulling back from her. "What happened!? Who did this to you?!"

"It's okay Naruto. They got theirs." She says to him. Sakura then stands up while helping him get to his feet as well.

'We're all okay, that's good. But, what's going to happen to us now?' Sasuke looks down at his left arm, remembering the sword he summoned just now. 'What was that sword about?'

--

"Has the intruder been taken care of?" A shadowy figure questions a woman with blue hair. The girl seems to be wearing a black kosode with red cloud markings on it.

"Yes. Apparently the boy was finished off by our newest recruit. You know, that replacement no one knows about." She answers, holding up a clipboard to him. The spiky haired shadowman takes the board and looks over the results.

"Good. Let's suit him in." He says, walking off into the shadows of their domain. He then looks up at a giant statue, of a head with two giant hands rising up from the ground.

* * *

Kenshin: That ends this chapter. Next time Naruto and his team reaches the tower to take part in the preliminaries. After Sasuke wins against Omoi and Haku fights Karui, Naruto begins his battle. Oh yeah, and some ninjas stall Team 7.

Manabu: On a side note here is information on the Twilight Star, with the first two blades.

1st Sword: The Crystal Sword Chromedread  
Weapon: Double-Edged Sword  
Description: A light blue colored blade with a tetragon hole guard.  
Abilities: It has the power to control and summon diamonds, both out of itself and converted from rocks it touches. It provides an endless supply, funded by the energy the user possesses. It can also repair itself, making it a most useful weapon.  
Weakness: While it makes diamonds it isn't as hard and strong as real ones. Vibrating sounds and shockwaves can easily shatter them.

2nd Sword: The Alchemy Sword Gilgamesh  
Weapon: Broad Sword  
Description: A silver sword with red and orange slits going up and down the sides. The edge and tip are too dull to cut anything.  
Abilities: The sword can convert itself to any metal it touches for about 2 minutes. When it strikes any object that isn't made of metal, it creates a chemical explosion.  
Weakness: Being made of metal it has the downsides of all metal objects, like rusting and attraction to magnets. The explosions also affect the user, and can damage them as well.


	7. The Preliminaries

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. Kishimoto does. I also do not own the Dragon Slayer idea, the sword Sasuke owns, or the catchphrase belonging to Static Shock.

Omake-

"Kakashi-sensei, I have a problem." Naruto says to his best friend.

"What is it this time?" Kakashi turns around to face his student. The two of them seem to be over top of a building.

"Well, every time I'm with another girl I somehow end up getting my face pounded it!" Naruto says to him. "First is Sakura and Ino, next is that girl Konohamaru transformed as, there was that Anko girl with the kunai to the cheek, afterwards I got flicked away by the old lady Tsunade, that damn sound ninja Shikamaru fought knocked me down, Hinata head-butted me, and then finally that black girl!"

"Well, most of the time it's practically an accident. After all, you are a cosmic punching bag." The silver haired ninja says to him, sighing while walking away.

"No I'm not!" Naruto walks towards the ninja, before the ceiling caved in on him and he fell inside. He rubs the wound on his head from the fall before looking around. He then notices that he's wet, but warm wet like hot water. "Oh no…"

"Naruto…" Sakura's voice could be heard behind the ninja. Knowing exactly what was going to happen he decides not to look back.

"If I can't see you I'm not in trouble!" Naruto then closes his eyes and runs away, escaping the women that were no doubt behind him waiting. But since he couldn't see he bashes his head into the wall. He rubs his forehead in pain. "AH! AH!"

"Well, it's much more entertaining than beating him up." Sakura says, looking to her side to see the other women bathing in the hot spring; Hinata, Tenten, Ino, Tsunade, Shizune, Ayame, Moegi, Anko and Kurenai.

_**Chapter 7: The Preliminaries**_

After the events involving Orochimaru and his Sound ninjas, which took part yesterday, the three ninjas hid themselves with Haku's team to rest their wounds. Now, early in the morning, Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke are dashing across the treetops of the forest in hopes to reach the center. Once they do they could enter in and finally take part in the final step in the exams, since they own both the Earth and the Heaven scroll.

As they venture further towards the castle, they soon realize that something was up; no matter how far they ran the castle didn't seem to get any closer. Even with the speed Naruto implanted into himself with the Gravity Sword it didn't matter.

"That damn castle seems to be getting farther away from us!" Naruto curses, stopping on top of a tree branch. He seems to be completely exhausted and out of energy.

Sasuke and Sakura join him on the same branch. Sakura looks ahead and realizes he's right, and then says, "I know! It's almost weird, like following a mirage!"

"Yeah…" Sasuke turns to his right and sees a large kabuto beetle crawling towards them.

"Kya! Why the hell is that beetle so big?" Sakura shouts, grossed at the beetle's appearance.

Sasuke takes out a set of kunai and tosses it at the giant insect. Since it pierces into its skull the beetle crashes to the tree branch and dies. "Let's keep going. I want to test something out."

"Sasuke, what about Sakura? She's getting tired!" Naruto says to him. Instead of answering him, the Uchiha takes off, leaving our blond hero and Sakura behind. After mumbling in anger, the boy and his female friend hurry up to join him.

An hour later Team 7 stop at a tree branch, most of them tired. Although with Naruto and his high stamina he could keep this up for hours. Sasuke looks around while panting, not at all paying attention to the castle before them. Sakura then complains, "What's going on? It's right in front of us!"

"It's like you said earlier Sakura. We are following a mirage, a genjutsu actually." Sasuke says to her, looking back at his two comrades. He then points down below him on the ground.

Naruto and Sakura glance at what's below them, and gasp when they see the same beetle he killed lying on the ground. Not only does it look the same, but also it has the kunai stuck in its head.

"What the hell is this crap?" Naruto curses as he jumps down to the dead bug.

"Naruto wait!" Sakura says to him. Sasuke follows after them, taking out a kunai knife as he hits the floor.

"Somebody is following us, and they're using genjutsu on us to make us go in circles. With it, they can tire us out and ambush us while we're weak." Sasuke explains. "And they're plan worked, for now we're a little exhausted."

"Well, given the structure of our surroundings, and the fact that we are kind of tired, if they were going to spring a trap, they'd probably do it right about-" Sakura begins as she takes in Sasuke's words. Just as she was about to finish, several ninjas in black suits wearing inhalers slither out of the trees and dirt. "-Now."

Sasuke looks around and scans the enemies, noticing they all wore the Kiri headbands on their heads. Their eyes were also wrapped up in cloth. 'This can't possibly be all of them. Only three ninjas should be on a single team, so they're either clones or this is another illusion.'

"You're all trapped. Hand over your scrolls." One of them says, holding up a double bladed kunai.

"Make us!" Naruto charges at that same guy, striking Gilgamesh into his stomach area. But his sword completely tears through his body, as if he was made of a sort of liquid. Not expecting his attack to do this, Naruto falls flat on his face and skids across the ground. The guy's body splits up into two people. "What the-"

'What's going on?' Sasuke says, as he activates his Sharingan. He then throws a set of shuriken at the ninja behind Naruto, tearing through his arm. The same arm reforms back in place.

The same ninja throws a kunai at Sasuke, who prepares to duck out of the way. But as he does the mark on his neck throbs, and he falls to his knees in pain, grasping the curse seal. 'My body! It won't react!'

"Sasuke!" Naruto calls out, not noticing the curse mark growing a little.

"Sasuke!" Sakura goes to him, and then looks behind her to spot the kunai. She picks it up, and notices it is real. 'It's not an illusion…'

Naruto looks off to the side to see Sakura picking up the kunai. 'The kunai is real, but the clones themselves are fakes. That's why my sword didn't work. Even if they were shadow or element clones, they would have still made an explosion.'

"They're all illusions. They're nothing more than a simple genjutsu that the enemy made to battle us." Sasuke says, still holding onto his painful mark. "The enemy must be hiding in sight to match our movements."

"For them to resort to such petty tricks must mean they don't have the strength to fight us directly. They'll strike when we can't move." Sakura says to herself, thinking over the situation perfectly. This only proves how smart she is.

"Sasuke, I think I have an idea!" Naruto says, dodging a kunai coming his way.

"Oh please! You have a plan? I'd like to see this!" Sasuke states, in a cocky voice.

Naruto forms his hands into a cross, and shouts, "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu," creating enough clones to outnumber the illusions.

"Wait, what are you doing? We can't waste energy on them!" Sasuke says to the blond ninja.

Naruto charges at the ninjas, ignoring Sasuke, and his warning. He punches and kicks them into submission. While this happened, two of the clones changed into Sakura and Sasuke, catching the real ones off guard. It is then that they realize his plan. Sasuke looks to Sakura, and they nod before disappearing from sight.

Naruto finally finishes fighting the illusion, until more come out from the ground to play. The young Uzumaki goes back into battle, using their Twilight Star replicates and Lightning abilities.

"This boy is pretty good. But he'll only end up wasting energy." A figure says while hiding away. His appearance is a white version of the black ninjas fighting.

"You're the waste of energy!" Sasuke says, popping up behind them. This guy, and his two buddies turn around to spot the Uchiha, and Sakura. They punch and kick the weaklings from Kiri out into the opening, canceling the genjutsu.

Naruto calls off his clones after realizing that their enemies have been exposed. He sheaths away the Twilight Star and turns to face them. One of them says, "But how!"

"Naruto used the Kage Bunshin as a distraction so he could henge two of them into us. As long as you thought we were out there you wouldn't have noticed us sneaking up on you." Sakura says to them, cracking her knuckles as she approaches them.

"And now, it's time we finished you off." Sasuke says, jumping out of the bushes to clobber them.

"Rairyu no Naruto Lariat!" Naruto jumps out towards the three ninjas, his feet and arms charged with electricity. He spreads his arms out and lifts his left foot up, kicking the middle one in the face. His arms grip the other two by the neck, and both are slammed into the ground. This move resembles a wrestler's in some way.

His friends watch as he took them all out, and picks himself up. Even Sasuke is impressed, with everything that has happened you would think Naruto would be too tired to move anymore. Of course, this wouldn't be the first time he's underestimated him.

Naruto brushes his legs and back and looks back at his friends. He smiles saying, "Okay guys! Let's get going!"

'Naruto has amazing energy and stamina…who knows how long he could fight!' Sakura's mind goes through this thought, and she smiles a bit as she thinks of the complications of what could happen, while blushing as well. She breaks out of thought when she sees Naruto heading towards the castle. With the genjutsu gone they could clearly see it in front of them.

Sasuke and Sakura ignore the three ninjas fallen and continue towards the castle. By the time the Kiri ninjas wake up Naruto and his friends would be in the castle, resting and such.

Two Days Later…

"Congratulations on passing the second test!" The Hokage says, standing before a large group of ninjas in an auditorium. These ninjas consist of the jonin leaders of the seven teams that passed, Ibiki and Anko for being the proctors, the genin that have passed, and one more ninja who looks really pale.

The younger ninjas are Naruto, Sakura, Sasuke, Kiba, Hinata, Shino, Samui, Karui, Omoi, Dosu, Kin, Zaku, Ino, Shikamaru, Chouji, Haku, Orin, Kenta, Gaara, Temari, Kankuro, Neji, Tenten and Lee.

The Hokage smiles as he notices most of the ninja that have arrived are genin from his village, and even then they're mostly rookies. 'No wonder they all allowed them to enter.'

"Sandaime-sama will now explain the third test." Anko says to them.

"Thank you Anko. This third part of the exams will test a Shinobi's true abilities." He begins, as everyone stands up to attention. "In actuality, it is really a preliminary."

"Preliminary?" Shikamaru mutters to himself.

"It's for who gets to go on to the main event. We really can't have everyone here continue." He says, and then turns to his right.

The sick looking ninja from before walks before the Hokage, and says to everyone, "Hello everyone, I'm Hayate. I shall be the referee of this part."

'You look a little too sick for this.' Naruto says in his thoughts.

"Sensei, I'm not sure I understand this preliminary, but why is it that everyone here isn't entitled to continuing?" Sakura asks the sick guy.

"Well, the thing is…we have too many people remaining…maybe because the first two were a bit too easy." Hayate replies to the little girl. He then coughs a bit. "For this many people, the rules of the Chunin Exams demand that we reduce the number one more time. There will be some guests coming that will be witnessing the exams, and the fights could take too long. We don't really have that much time.

"So I advise that anyone not feeling up to it give up at this moment." He concludes, coughing a bit after he finishes.

'Like you?' Sasuke mutters, grabbing his neck softly before he looks around. Being behind Sakura she wouldn't notice that he's in pain, but she clearly remembers what happened.

The jonin could clearly see that Sasuke's neck is in some form of pain, and the Hokage sighs as he realizes that the curse on his is affecting him. Regardless, he wouldn't sit down for it and would fight back if he is told otherwise. Hayate then says, "If no one wants to leave then we will continue."

'Sakura, I'm sorry…but I can't pull out. It will be a disgrace to all those who I promised to fight against me.' In Sasuke's mind, the images of Lee, Neji, Gaara, and Dosu of Team Sound.

Anko then snaps her fingers, and a mechanical screen lowers down from behind them up above. Hayate then says, "This electronic scoreboard will show the match ups for each battle at random. And our two fighters are-"

Everyone looks up at the scoreboard, which says 'Sasuke Uchiha and Omoi'.

Naruto sighs as he realizes that Sasuke would be fighting so soon. But then he remembers that the other person he's fighting is one of the ninjas that ambushed him before. He then turns to face the team, and his attention goes immediately to Samui.

His mind goes off to the second time they met, not long after they entered the building and met their teacher Iruka by opening the scrolls.

_Flashback…_

_After Iruka told them they would be able to move on to the finals, Naruto and the others decided to rest and wait until the day would come. Sasuke slept the rest of the time. Sakura went out and started going through physical training. Naruto decided to explore, and eat any form of electricity he finds._

_While Naruto was looking for an outlet, he spots the ninjas from Team Lightning down a hall. Immediately he hides himself, and watches them in hiding. He then remembers what he did before to the blond, touching her breasts and shocking her to escape; it would be disastrous if they met up again._

_"Do you think that other kid passed?" Omoi asks his team, which grasps their leader Samui's attention. "You know, that kid from earlier in the orange jumpsuit."_

_"You mean the one that violated Samui-taichou and ran off?" Karui shouts, causing Naruto to cringe a little._

_"I hope he does finish. I would like to speak with him about something important." Samui states, crossing her arms under her chest._

_Naruto takes this time to slowly sneak away, and head down the hall to escape. Before he could do that, someone behind him gets in his way: another Samui. She glares down into his eyes with a cold, paralyzing stare, and her frown becomes even stronger than normal as she looks at him._

_"Uh, is there any chance you'll let me through?" He asks her in a meek voice. Instead of answering him she grabs him and tosses him down the hall towards them. After sliding for a while, he picks himself up, and notices that the girl three ninjas are looking down at him. He frowns in fear and mumbles, "Uh oh."_

_"There you are!" Karui shouts at him. She reaches down and grabs hold of his collar, and then slams him against the wall. The Samui clone disappears due to its uselessness, and Naruto notices that it was made of lightning. "How could you do that to Samui-taichou?"_

_"I knew this would happen." Omoi says as he gives himself a face palm._

_"Look, if this is about me shocking her then I would like to apologize-" Karui knees her elbow into his face, cutting his sentence off._

_"It's not as insignificant as that! You touched her in such an uncomfortable place! Do you know what that means to her?" She says to Naruto in a threatening voice._

_"It shames her as a woman?" – Naruto_

_"You've initiated the Kikon Process of my family laws. If a woman is to be touched in an inappropriate place, then that lays shame on their entire family. That family member has to challenge the one who did it to battle." Samui says to Naruto. The blond male seems to shrink in size as he stares into her cold eyes. But as he does he could sense something else in her eyes, a weird stare he couldn't identify. If it were used on someone else, he would have recognized it for the leer it is._

_"Uh, sure...why not?" Naruto agrees to the battle, ignoring the leer she's giving him. Karui then puts him down, letting Samui approach him. From where he was dropped he could barely see her face over those huge breasts of hers._

_"Come on…" Naruto is gripped by Samui and dragged down the hall. She brings him outside in the Forest of Death, where they could battle one another without busting anything up._

_Samui tosses Naruto out onto the ground, and steps before him with her hands on her hips. Electricity sparks throughout her body, and she prepares to face Naruto. "Let's go. I will restore honor to my family."_

_'Wow. People from Kumo take things a little too seriously.' Naruto complains in his mind, picking himself back up to his feet. He cracks his knuckles and stares at the woman in front of him. "Rairyu no Hoko!"_

_Naruto breaths in and gathers electricity around his mouth, and fires it out in a concentrated blast. Samui leaps over the attack as it strikes the ground, and pulls out a scroll hidden within her chest. After unraveling it and wiping blood on it, from biting her thumb, she summons a full tang odachi with a black hilt and silver scabbard._

_"Ikazuchi no Mai!" Samui appears before Naruto, and reappears behind him. Several cuts appear on his right arm, under his left kidney, and left leg. Naruto also receives an electric shock to his body. "Your reaction is slow. You should never have shamed me in the first place."_

_Naruto turns around and dashes towards Samui with his body electrified. He then head butts Samui in the stomach, almost making her throw up. He then lifts her up in the air with his head, shouting, "Rairyu no Ikazuchi Toppa!"_

_'He wasn't defeated by the Ikazuchi no Mai?' Omoi watches the battle with intrigue, wondering why Naruto couldn't be hurt by her attack. He could see the cuts she made worked, but those came from the blade. 'It shouldn't matter how strong a lightning user he is! No one should be fully immune to electricity!'_

_Naruto stares up into the air, accidentally getting a clear shot up her skirt, and blushes a little when he gets a full view. Samui blushes as well when she sees that the boy has shamed her even more. She performs a couple of hand signs and electric chakra generates around her sword._

_"Ikazuchi no Mai: Sango!" Samui descends to Naruto's level, preparing to finish him off this time. Naruto draws the Twilight Star and the sword transforms._

_Instead of becoming one of the others, it morphs into a black contraption with light-green lights, but there is no blade on the mechanical hilt. Naruto holds his sword up high to the sky. Before Samui could strike him, Naruto rolls to the side to avoid her. The lightning around the blade wouldn't hurt him, but the blade itself would cut through him without something to block it, and he hasn't gone through enough training to use magnetism._

_Naruto rolls out of the way of a slash, which would have taken his head off, and points his weapon at her. He then yells, "Solar Sword; Shining Angelus!"_

_But nothing happens. Naruto looks down at his weapon, and then looks at his surroundings. 'That's right. It only works when exposed to sunlight! Just when I need it!'_

_"I don't know what it is you're planning, but you won't have much time to squander!" Samui says, holding her sword out to him. She then charges forward._

_Naruto looks to his right and sees a spot of light from the sun above. He rushes over to that spot, to which Samui follows him to, and steps into the light. Naruto then holds Shining Angelus before him, and a blade of pure green light energizes out from the sword's hilt. It is shaped like a baton with a rounded tip._

_'A sword of pure energy?' Samui thinks of this as she clashes with the light saber, both blades sparking with energy._

_Samui pushes Naruto's blade back with her own, and slashes from her right diagonally. Naruto ducks underneath the attack and kicks her with his left leg twice. She blocks them both with her sword arm's wrist, the second ending with her hand beside her face, and grabs her katana with both hands. She then swings diagonally at him._

_Naruto crosses Shining Angelus between her sword and his, and then pushes her off his weapon. He then ducks down and makes a sweep kick at her, tripping the girl and knocking her to the ground. Samui rolls away from him, and initiates a jutsu. "Raiton: Hidendou no Jutsu! (Lightning Release: Ice Electricity technique)"_

_She holds her left hand at him, and a bolt of light blue electricity fires at him. The Uzumaki receives the blast, and growls as it begin to freeze him. He grabs the lightning with his hands and begins eating it. Samui and the others gaze at him with interest and shock._

_"Wow! I've never tasted such cold electricity before!" He says, smiling while exhaling. His breath is an icy cold mist as it goes out of his lungs._

_'So, he must own a Kekkei Genkai that protects him from Raiton, right? This will make it even harder on Samui-taichou.' – Omoi_

_"C'mon, Samui-taichou! You can do it!" Karui cheers for her team leader._

_Samui charges after Naruto and makes several jabs and a swing at his head. Naruto dips and dodges each strike, before he stabs the ground with his sword, which has transformed into Gilgamesh. This creates a smokescreen that blocks her vision._

_Naruto then charges forward at Samui, with his feet enhancd by electricity, and strikes her abdomen with Gilgamesh, making another explosion. Samui falls to her knees in pain, grasping her stomach as it was in the line of impact. Naruto then kicks her weapon out of her hand and points his sword to her throat, which has reverted to normal. "I win."_

_"Samui-taichou!" Karui shouts out, about to run towards her. Omoi stops her._

_Samui looks up to her opponent, staring at his sweaty face and cerulean blue eyes. As she looks at him she could sense a kind warm feeling in his eyes, and a smile finally forms on her face. While blushing, she then says, "I submit to you. You are indeed stronger."_

_"Thank you. Now you can stay away from me!" Naruto says to the girl, before sheathing his sword away. He then begins to walk away._

_"You have defeated me. As part of my family tradition, I am to be betrothed to you." Samui says to him. Karui and Omoi gasp in shock when she says that._

_"Is she actually going through with it!" Karui asks her partner._

_Naruto looks back at Samui, an add look of confusion on his face. He then thinks about what she said, and begins to search through his mind to try and find out where he's heard 'betroth' before, and what it means. He then gasps when he realizes that he's heard Mei refer to them once as being betrothed to each other. "What?"_

_"In my clan it is part of our traditions and rules, that when a member of the opposite sex shames one of our own, the victim is forced to battle against and kill that person or commit seppuku, and restore honor to our family. But, if that person is truly stronger in abilities, then that proves they possess stronger blood than them. And because of that the loser must marry their better." Samui explains to him, now bowing before the young Uzumaki._

_"Once again, what? I mean, isn't that kind of a stretch! I don't even know your name!" Naruto says to her, and her head rises up to look at him._

_"You have to accept! Because you spared me just now, there can only be three outcomes; either I become your wife, my family forces seppuku on me, or I have to kill you!" Samui says, looking up into his eyes._

_At this a frantic Naruto grits his teeth in anger; this girl really isn't giving him much options. If he doesn't agree to wed her he would be responsible for her getting killed. Her blood would be on his hands. He then groans, "This is not happening to me…I guess, it's a good thing that Jiji told me about the CRA…"_

_"The CRA?" – Samui_

_"If it means that much to you, I guess I can get married twice." Naruto says to her, finally accepting his new 'engagement'._

_"Thank you. My name is Samui of the Denzi clan. I hope to be of value to you." Samui says to him. She then gets back up onto her feet, standing two inches over him._

_Naruto holds his hand out to her, and says, "My name is Naruto Uzumaki."_

_End Flashback…_

Naruto's mind comes out of thought and focuses back on the current situation. He sees Sasuke and Omoi coming out from the crowd of genin they were in. Hayate then says, "Now, we will be starting the first match. Will everyone else move to the top level?"

Everyone follows the man's orders and head up the stairs to watch the fight at a safer spot. As they do Kakashi passes by Sasuke, and whispers to him, "Don't use the Sharingan if you want to win this fight."

"So you know," Sasuke replies back in the same whispering tone.

"Just remember, if it activates again then you may lose your life. If it acts up I will be forced to stop the battle." Kakashi says to the boy. He then heads up the stairs.

"Let the match begin." – Hayate

Omoi begins the battle by pulling out three shurikens and throwing them at Sasuke, who draws a kunai and deflects them back. Omoi draws his katana this time and blocks them, before charging at Sasuke. The Uchiha grabs hold of his neck in pain, and dodges a slash at his neck. Sasuke then ducks down onto his side and kicks Omoi's right leg, bringing him down to the ground. Sasuke then hooks his legs around Omoi's, before grabbing his sword arm and pulling on it. In this position he seems to be giving him a sleeper hold.

"Alright!" Naruto smiles as he notices his friend is close to winning.

"You won't win so easily!" Omoi initiates his chakra element, in this case fire. This burns Sasuke off of him, and causes the Uchiha to roll away. The two ninjas then face one another, with Sasuke tired and out of strength.

Omoi takes his tiredness as a chance and with his incredible speed he comes before Sasuke before he could register him on his senses. Sakura cries out, "Sasuke!"

This cry is enough to gather his attention, and Sasuke ducks underneath the katana's blade in time. He then spends the next few minutes ducking and dodging rapid consecutive jabs, his anger rising as the battle plays out. As it does an invisible veil of darkness illuminates from his left arm.

It wasn't to Naruto though, as he could clearly see the dark energy coming out like it was right in his face. "That darkness…what's it coming from?"

"This is the power of the Uchiha?" Gaara mutters, watching the battle totally unimpressed with what he's seeing.

Sasuke trips on his own feet, falling down on his back. He looks up to see Omoi coming up to him with a sword strike. Sasuke instinctively holds his left arm out, and the darkness becomes visible to all now. It takes the shape of the dark sword from before, blocking the fire katana Omoi held.

"What's that sword?" Omoi asks, not giving up on trying to cut through.

Sasuke doesn't answer, and instead grips the hilt with his other hand and pushes him back. He then makes another swing, the sword swirling with darkness once more. As Omoi blocks the strike, an explosion blows him back. Sasuke now holds his sword's explosion form, the one he crippled Zaku with.

"That sword." Naruto looks down at his own Twilight Star, and he could faintly hear a voice telling him something. What it was he didn't know.

'That voice is back…it's telling me what to do with the sword now. The Dark Explosive Sword, and the Dark Metal Sword…there's also this one!' As Sasuke reads these thoughts in his head, his sword changes again, this time to a thinner light blue rapier-like sword. He then dashes towards Omoi, his speed much greater than before. He then rapidly slashes at Omoi's body, each cut making a light wound on his body.

'The Dark Sonic Sword increases my speed by making me lighter! And the Dark Twin Dragon Sword,' as he thinks this thought, he ends his slashing combo with his sword releasing dark fumes and splitting into two separate weapons. He then slashes at Omoi, leaving a cross wound on his body with fire embers and ice particles on his body. Sasuke now holds two swords; both purple and double-edged like the first two. 'It allows me to wield a sword of fire and a sword of ice at once.'

'What's that sword he has? I don't remember him having that.' Kakashi notices the power of the sword Sasuke now possesses, and now wonders where he got it. 'Could it possibly be another gift from Orochimaru…'

'Another thought is coming to my head…' "Bakuhatsu no Kenjutsu: Bakuenga! (Explosive Sword Technique: Exploding Flame Fang)" Sasuke's sword changes back into its Explosion form, and slams his weapon down on Omoi's chest, creating a powerful explosion that shakes the very foundation everyone is standing on.

Everyone shields their faces as the attack shakes the building, and keeps their foothold. Gaara, although, didn't flinch at all. Infact, he is smiling. Temari and Kankuro pale as they notice that he is actually smiling, which to them is a bad sign.

Naruto grits his teeth as he watches the smoke clear, and then smiles when he sees what's happened. Sasuke stands above Omoi without his weapon, and Omoi is on the ground unconscious, his katana broken in two. Hayate holds his right hand up, and says, "Winner, Sasuke Uchiha."

"Alright! Sasuke!" Naruto cheers, glad that his rival has one. Sakura smiles a bit too, though wasn't really happy when she saw the weapon in his hand again. Kakashi sighs in relief as he notices the sword has disappeared. The mark on his neck didn't activate either.

When Sasuke falls to the ground, Kakashi leaps down to them and grabs the Uchiha. He then whispers to him, "Let's go. We got to seal that mark away."

"Sure." Sasuke agrees; now glad that at least he can move on in the exams.

As they leave Naruto notices the dark markings on his arm and neck. He then turns to his friend Sakura and asks her, "Hey, did you see something on his arm and neck?"

"No. I didn't." Sakura replies, obviously hiding her knowledge of the curse mark from him. She didn't want him to find out, as per Sasuke's request to her that he stays in the dark to it.

After that the other matches started to commence; Shino went up against Zaku, who's right arm was still broken from his little encounter with Sasuke. With Shino's insect friends he literally blew Zaku's arm off, and defeated him.

Next up comes Haku vs. Karui, who both appear before the battlefield. Naruto turns his attention to his friend Haku, who would be battling the partner of the woman he agreed to marry. Haku takes out a set of senbon and prepares for his fight while Karui draws her katana.

Haku and Karui dash at one another, once Hayate began the match, and already the swordsman starts her assault. Haku ducks underneath a slash before hopping over her shoulders. He then throws several senbon at her from above, but she easily blows them away with one single powerful swing of her sword.

With only one left in his hand Haku lands, and is already being pursued by the black girl. He dashes forward and blocks her swing by the hilt. She quickly turns to her other side for a follow up, but Haku spins as well and blocks in the same way once again. They both glare at one another, and press on the other with all their strength.

Haku releases control of the girl's sword, and ducks below her swing. He then makes a sweep kick and kicks her in the stomach. She slides across the ground from that attack, and her anger rises as she takes hold of her katana. "That's it! I'm ending this!"

"Suiton: Mizudama no Jutsu! (Water Release: Water Ball)" Haku makes several handsigns and blows a water bullet at Karui. She cuts straight down on the blast, splitting it up just like the Red Sea. Haku backs away and blocks her sword with his senbon, but the weapon slowly begins to crack under pressure. He ducks underneath her and slides between her legs. With the water she cut earlier this is possible.

"Get back here!" Karui yells, running towards him once more.

Haku pulls out a kunai, the only one he possesses, and blocks her strike with one hand. He then does a number of hand signs with his free hand. Karui then realizes, 'He can do hand seals with one hand?'

Karui holds the kunai back with her left arm, which holds the sword, and punches the calm ice user in the face. This single punch draws blood in an instant, it leaking down from his lips and nose. But even with this injury Haku continues with his hand signs.

"This battle is over…Sensatsu Suishou!" Haku then stomps on the ground, which is covered in water, and the water rises up around them. The water then forms into sharp ice needles. "Surrender or be stabbed to death."

"Ha! Don't think you can scare me with this! These needles can hurt you as well!" Karui says to him, gripping tightly onto his shirt.

"Maybe so," Haku begins, looking at a single needle behind her. This one lowers itself and stabs into her left leg. Karui cries out in pain, since this needle strikes a pressure point on her leg, causing it to go numb. "But I have perfect understanding of the human body. I know every pressure point and nerve location you have. As long as I'm holding you down you can't escape."

Two more needles stab into her shoulder, striking the pressure points located on them so her sword arm becomes numb and useless as well. 'Shit! How does a genin have this much experience?'

"This match is over; you're obviously ambidextrous, but you cannot keep up with my speed when you have lost one of your legs and arms." Haku says, before looking off to the sidelines.

"The winner of this match is Haku." Hayate says, holding his hand out to the Hyoton heir.

"Yeah! Go Haku!" Naruto and Sakura shout, cheering their friend.

Haku releases the water needles, including the ones on Karui's body. He then picks her up and says, "I'm sorry, Karui-san. Your numbness will go away in a few minutes."

"Hey! Let go!" She says to him, blushing in embarrassment as the boy lifts her up. "I don't need your damn sympathy!"

"It's called common courtesy. You can't walk right now, can you?." He says to her.

Karui blushes even more, knowing that he's right about being able to walk. "Fine."

Haku carries the poor girl up the steps, to her leader and team Jonin Samui and Killer Bee; this guy has dark brown skin like her and Omoi, he wears shades, possesses a muscular build, and has white hair complete with beard. He also has a tattoo on his face and right shoulder. He is also dressed similarly to the normal Kumo jonin.

Haku bows to the two before going off to rejoin his teammates. Samui sighs as he looks down at Karui, who looks away in embarrassment. Killer Bee then says, "Sheesh! You can't even beat a girly kid? Maybe you and Omoi need to get back to basics."

"I'm sorry. I just couldn't get out of that last move…" Karui explains to him.

"No excuses, Karui. But I must admit, the boy is rather interesting. His speed was much greater than a normal genin, even compared to us." Samui says to the girl, rubbing her shoulders due to back pain.

"Next up is," The scoreboard brings up the names Kankuro and Kenta Hibiki. The battle didn't go so well for Kenta. His skills with the scythe were pretty good, but he didn't realize that his strength was wasted on a puppet. Even when he destroyed it, Kankuro pops up from the dummy wrappings and finishes Kenta off, winning the round for him.

After his battle Shikamaru Nara and Kin Tsuchi pop up, and they started their battle. Even though Kin got him at first with her needles and bell trick, but eventually he got her under his Kagemane jutsu. He then knocks her out by making her bash her head into the wall.

The sixth fight has begun, with Tenten and Temari coming up. The fight begins with the weapon's mistress showering the blond woman with thousands of sharp items. Temari blocks them all with powerful gusts of wind released from her fan, and almost paralyzes the flat weapon user.

After the clean up Sakura Haruno and Ino Yamanaka start their fight. Naruto cheers on Sakura during the fight, even though Kakashi, who returns after helping Sasuke, tells him not to. The fight ends with Sakura winning, knocking her rival Ino out in a final punch.

The eighth fight has Chouji Akimichi fighting against Dosu Kinuta. This fight didn't last long, even with Chouji's clever deducing of his abilities. His expansion ability was nothing to Dosu's sound weaponry. Gaara and Rock Lee's fight was even more one-sided; even with Lee's advance speed and physical strength, added with the opening of the gates, the fighter stood no chance against the demon of the sand. His left arm and leg were the result of his defeat.

After that sad defeat, where especially Naruto and Sakura were upset over, the scoreboard reads the names Samui and Orin. Naruto pays close attention to this battle, his main interest in Samui. He only won their battle because he has immunity to electricity, where she specializes in it. Also his swordsmanship was only able to match hers thanks to the Twilight Star.

"Begin." – Hayate

Samui calls forth her sword while Orin draws hers. They commence in rapid sword swings, parrying the others and trying to seek an opening. Well, this is what Orin is trying to do, but Samui is clearly doing damage to the girl. After two minutes of swordplay, Orin seems to be drenched in her own blood while Samui is clearly clean and damage-free.

"Winner of this round is Samui." Hayate says, stopping the fight before Orin gets into more trouble. Orin collapses on her back and passes out, allowing a team of medics to take her away.

'So, the only ones left are Hinata, that Neji guy, me and Kiba.' Naruto thinks, as he watches Samui walk up the stairs. As she does Samui notices Naruto looking at her, and a small smile pops up on her face. She also makes a quick wink at him, causing the electro-kinesis user to blush.

"You two know each other, Naruto?" Kakashi asks his pupil. Sakura looks up to Kakashi as she hears what he said it.

"Uh, well, actually we have met. You see-"

The scoreboard sets up the 11th match, this one being Naruto Uzumaki and Kiba Inuzuka. Naruto smirks as he is finally called up for battle. He then cheers, "Yes! It's about damn time!"

"Yes! Oh god, yes! We got lucky! This guy won't take too long!" Kiba says, confident that him and Akamaru will be able to surpass the fox Jinchuuriki. Akamaru barks happily to express how glad it is.

The two ninjas go down to the battlefield and set themselves before the other. Hayate then coughs, and says, "The eleventh match of the preliminaries, Naruto vs. Kiba, will begin."

"I can't believe how lucky we are! I thought I'd have to fight against that Neji guy!" Kiba says with a cocky voice and attitude.

Naruto growls and shouts, "Oh, shut up! And make that dog go away!"

"Like hell! Akamaru fights beside me, like always!" Kiba says to him, as his dog hops out from his shirt.

"Eh? Is this allowed?" Naruto asks Hayate.

"Yes, (coughs) animals or insects are the same as ninja tools. It's okay." He says, coughing a little more. The guy should really get to bed.

'This guy…back in the academy he couldn't make a single bunshin, and it took him longer than most to learn the basic jutsus. This won't take too long.' "Shikyaku no Jutsu! (Four Legs)" Kiba does a single hand seal, and then gets down on all fours. To everyone they could see Kiba's claws have started to grow, and he seems more animal-like than normal. Kiba seems totally prepared for victory. But Naruto, he isn't even paying attention. Right now he's performing stretches. "What are you doing?"

"I am limbering up. Gotta make sure my body doesn't cramp up during battle!" He replies, continuing his stretches.

"A tiger doesn't limber up when it goes to kill its prey!" Kiba says to the blond. He then dashes towards Naruto, preparing to tear through him with his claws.

Electricity gathers to Naruto's feet as he approaches, allowing Naruto to leap over him just in time. Naruto then skids to the ground while watching Kiba coming back at him. Dog boy stops when he sees Naruto drawing his sword and stabbing it into the ground. Afterwards Naruto stretches his arms out while clenching his fists, gathering chakra to flow throughout his body.

This chakra is transformed by his Kekkei Genkai Hadouryu and becomes electricity. His entire body sparks with electricity and flashes before everyone's eyes. Samui watches Naruto with a small smile on her face, some teeth exposed as well. Sakura gasps in amazement at the power he shows, once against electrified by how cool he looks, and Hinata smiles, as she knows Naruto will not be completely overwhelmed.

The 'lightning storm' ends as Naruto calls back his electricity, and stares at Kiba. His eyes give a shocking glare. He then smiles, saying, "I'm gonna put a shock to your system."


	8. Training is Defeat's Antidote

_**Naruto and The Water Princess**_

Disclaimer: I do not own the following; Naruto, Fairy Tail, Rave, or Static Shock.

Kenshin: In this chapter Naruto fights Kiba. Hinata then fights Neji, and Naruto shows feelings for her.

Hakurei: Naruto then meets up with that girl Mei and spots Jiraiya. Not much on Samui though.

Kenshin: What's that bounty hunter doing in a Shonen Jump story?

Hakurei: Samui, not Samus you idiot! Let's begin the omake.

Omake –

"Without the Kyubi Genie, you're nothing!" Madara says to Naruto, wrapping his snake-like tail around his body and squeezing the life out of him.

"The genie…" He says as he turns away from the giant serpent. Naruto looks to the side and sees the nine tailed genie hiding while watching the battle. Naruto then remembers something he heard the genie told him, and a glint appears in his eyes. "The genie! The Kyubi has more power than you'll ever have!!"

"What?!" Madara yells at him.

"The genie is the only reason you have your power as well! He can easily take it away!" – Naruto

"Naruto? What are you doing? Why are you getting me involved?" Asks the genie, who was rather scared to get in such a situation.

"Face it, Madara! You're still just second best!" Naruto finishes, getting on the guy's ego even more.

Madara then comes to realize, "He's right…his power does exceed my own…but not for long!" Madara then slithers over to the genie, Naruto still in his grasp.

"Now now, let's not get all worked up over what the little kid said. I think he's had one-too many hits from the snake." – Kyubi

"Slave! For my last wish!" Madara slithers behind the genie, scaring it even more. "I wish you to make me the strongest genie that ever lived!!"

The Kyubi looks at his comrades, Naruto and the ones transformed by Madara's magic. Naruto nods at him, convincing the genie finally. "Fine. Your wish is my command…way to go, kit!"

The genie then points his finger at Madara, and shoots a blast of magic at him. Madara is soon consumed by his own energy, and he ascends high up into the sky, as he grows massive. Naruto is released from his tail and lands next to it. The tail itself grows and expands into ten separate ones.

"Yes…Yes! The power!" Madara laughs maniacally as he rises high into the sky. He can even reach to the heavens and the moon. "The universe is mine to command! Mine to control!! All will be ruled by an iron fist, just as the Sage predicted!!!"

"Not so fast, you fool! Aren't you forgetting something?!" Naruto yells, standing beside where the ten tails are connected.

"Huh?" – Madara

"You want to be a genie, you got it!" As he says this, binding cuffs appear on Madara's wrists.

"WHAT!?!" – Madara

Naruto then holds up a black lamp, saying, "And everything that comes with it!"

* * *

_**Chapter 8: Training Is Defeat's Antidote!**_

Naruto holds his hands towards Kiba, electricity shooting out to him. Kiba dodges the bolt and continues after him. Akamaru even joins into the fun as it follows along side the dog boy. "Let's go, Akamaru!"

Naruto grabs the Twilight Star, just as he notices a tiny ball in Kiba's hand. 'Smoke screen!'

Kiba tosses the smoke ball at Naruto, creating a smokescreen just like he expected. Naruto blocks his face from receiving too much of it, and coughing from it. Naruto leaps out from one end of the smoke cloud, holding the Twilight Star and keeping him from getting ambushed inside the smog. As he escapes, he spots Akamaru leaping up at him to chew on his skull.

Naruto grabs Akamaru and tosses him into the air. He then grabs the dog and swings him around. Kiba sneaks up on him to take Naruto out, but a second Naruto comes up and kicks him in the face. The Inuzuka looks at the two Narutos and gasps, "Since when could he make a solid clone?!"

"Naruto really has grown." Shikamaru says to himself as he watches the two.

"I'll make you pay for that." Kiba then flicks a tiny pill into Akamaru's mouth, which it chews and swallows. The dog then viciously attacks Naruto while his fur turns red. That Naruto turns out to be a clone though.

"What the? His fur turned red!" – Naruto

"Duh! His name is Akamaru!" Kiba then swallows a pill of his own, and his muscles begin to constrict around him. Akamaru then jumps onto his back as Kiba leans down. "Jujin Bunshin no Jutsu!"

With this jutsu Akamaru transforms into an exact duplicate of Kiba. Both of them growl and glare angrily at Naruto. 'Uh oh. He must have used one of those soldier pills I heard about. He must really be planning to finish this off.'

"Shikyaku no Jutsu!" Naruto runs away from the approaching ninjas, his sword transformed into Chromedread. He then stands it into the ground just as they reach him. Diamond walls the size of couches expel from the ground to block their attacks. But with their enhanced strength Kiba and Akamaru easily bust through the shield.

'Diamond-hard my ass!' – Naruto

"Gatsuuga! (Piercing Fang)" Kiba and Akamaru swirl together in the form of twin tornadoes, coming after the lightning user in his diamond domain. He holds the Twilight Star with his main hand, the right, and slams it to the ground. Since it has changed into Gilgamesh it creates an explosion. This is enough to generate a cloud of dust to block their view.

But even this doesn't work, as the Gatsuuga attack pierces and shreds Naruto about. He falls to the ground in pain, coughing up blood. Hinata holds her hands to her mouth, keeping herself from yelping out from seeing her beloved torn apart.

"Damn…this isn't what I expected." Naruto mutters, trying to pick himself back up to his feet. "I have to win…Hokage…"

"A useless weakling like you can't become Hokage. You're better off traveling through towns selling food! If you want a real Hokage, I'll take that position myself!" The Inuzuka states to the guy.

Electricity sparks all around Naruto's body, his chakra responding to his anger. He then stands up tall and holds his sword up. Hinata and Sakura both sigh in relief as they notice Naruto's okay, while Samui grins with a small glint in her eyes.

"You're rather annoying, you know." Says Kiba before he and Akamaru charge at Naruto. The electro swordsman lifts his sword up, and slams it down onto the ground. This repeats the process he has done before, generating a smoke cloud. "Like the same thing will work again!"

Kiba and Akamaru charge at the smokescreen, initiating Gatsuuga. They claw through the smokescreen and slice up Naruto, until they notice he has dispelled into smoke. 'Kage Bunshin?!'

"Diamond-Explosion Mad Dance!" Kiba and Akamaru look out from the smokescreen and see Naruto holding Chromedread up. Diamond spikes extend from the blade's edges, as he swings and releases them in a large flurry.

"That's just like that girl's technique." Temari says as she watches the fight.

"I don't know what that sword is, but it's useless against me and Akamaru! Gatsuuga!" The twin ninjas swirl into slicing tornadoes and carve their way through the many diamond spikes coming at him. Naruto then holds his sword back with his right hand and comes at the two ninjas, transforming into Gilgamesh.

"This is the end!" Naruto slams his sword down on the first tornado, creating a massive explosion that envelops them all in smoke. In the midst of the explosion, half of Gilgamesh's blade breaks off and ricochets into the air.

Everyone watches the battlefield with great interest, this battle almost on pair with the Gaara and Lee fight. Sakura and Hinata hold their hands over their hearts in worry for Naruto. Samui continues to stare at the battle, a little bit of drool coming out of her mouth.

The smoke clears up, revealing the three ninjas standing before one another. Naruto's sword has been broken in half, the other part still up in the air. Akamaru and Kiba grin triumphantly as they realize Naruto's prime weapon has fallen to their powerful claws. Kiba then says, "I told you, it's useless against me and Akamaru. You don't have what it takes to be Hokage."

Naruto swings his sword at the Kiba that didn't speak, his eyes shielded and overshadowed by his hair. That one grabs the blade, as the other one says, "Why don't you give up!? You can't beat me with a broken sword!"

"A true ninja isn't one with thousands of jutsus." Naruto says to the dog boys. His right arm reaches back and grabs the other half of Gilgamesh, which has fallen to him. Light radiates and sparks around each piece, giving them a new shape. "It's one who has the guts to never give up!"

Catching them off guard, Naruto slashes the Kiba holding his sword with both weapons, crossing his arms as he hits him. He shouts, "Chaos Sword: Final Arcana!"

That single twin slash releases volts of white and black lightning, that cuts and shocks the Kiba receiving it. This one poofs into smoke, and reveals it to be Akamaru. "Akamaru!"

"He got a new sword!" Sakura says, noticing this is the first time she has seen this new form. This new form of the Twilight Star is dual. Both are shaped into dual short claymores the size of a 6'2 male's femur. The one in his right hand is dark purple and black in color and has a crown dangling from the hilt. The one in his left hand is white and yellow in color with a star hanging from the hilt.

'Manabu once told me; the moment I unlock a sword I can use them with complete knowledge of their abilities. The fifth sword is the only dual form of the Twilight Star; I wield a sword possessing white lightning, and another creating black lightning.' Naruto says in his mind as he looks down at his weapons. His attention then goes to Kiba, who is now holding his defeated dog.

'His sword didn't break at all; it only split in two in recognition of that new form…I can't get mad…' Kiba lays down Akamaru and slowly calms himself down, watching the lightning swordsman carefully. He then stands back up, holding shuriken in his hands, behind his back. 'I have to stay calm. Naruto's already damaged enough as it is. He must have already realized those explosions hurt him as well. All I need is an opening, and one more Shikyaku, for victory.'

He's right though. Naruto's explosions have gotten to him. It's gotten to a point where he can't use another one or risk going unconscious. 'I can't waste allot of chakra in a single strike either. I need a recharge…' Naruto looks up to see the scoreboard is still out. An electronic like that would produce lots of electricity, enough to finish off Kiba and this fight.

'This sword also releases an electromagnetic signal. I can use my powers to retrieve it whenever I lose it.' Naruto lifts both swords up in his hands and prepares to make his assault.

"I don't know what you're planning, but I won't let you get away with it!" Kiba shouts before throwing the shuriken at him. Naruto ignores them and throws the swords in the air. This toss forces the blades to spin as they head towards the scoreboard behind Kiba, while he gets several star blades stuck in his body.

"Naruto!" Sakura holds her mouth when she sees him receive that attack, her heart in pain from witnessing him hurt.

"Now's my chance!" Kiba activates his Four Legs technique and prepares to finish off Naruto.

Everyone then turns their attention to the scoreboard, which has been cut out of place by Naruto's swords. This causes it to crash to the ground and generate thousands of volts from its screen and cord. Anko screams, "My scoreboard!! It took me weeks to put that up!!"

"I guess he's realized his abilities." The Hokage says, giving himself a face palm as he watches.

"Let's try this." Naruto forces electricity to his feet and jets himself up into the air. Final Arcana comes whirling towards him, but he could only grab one due to flipping. The other sword stabs into the ground and stays there. He then lands in front of the scoreboard.

"What are you up to?!" Kiba asks him. Naruto holds his other sword up, having it revert to its sealed state. This causes the other blade to vanish. Naruto then sheaths his weapon away, and grabs the cord. Hinata and Sakura gasp when they see this. Even Kiba seems shocked. "Whoa, what are you doing!? You touch that and you'll die!"

"But I'm hungry!" Naruto then bites down on the cord, catching all who don't know his bloodline by shock. Even Gaara seems interested in what he's trying to do. But to their surprise, he's actually eating the electricity. By doing so he's also curing his wounds, and replenishing his chakra reserve. Naruto then drops the cord, having taken enough from it, and turns to face Kiba. His body sparks with electricity and blinds the dog's eyes. He then breaths in, gathering lightning to his mouth.

"Oh no. Everybody, get from his line of strike!" Kakashi says to everyone, warning him or her to move to a safer place. All the ninjas behind Kiba, the team from Suna, move to the side of the ring to heed Kakashi's warning.

"Rairyu no Hoko!" Naruto releases a powerful blast of concentrated electricity from his mouth, which engulfs Kiba completely. The attack continues and hits the wall behind him even. But, despite Kakashi's warning, it didn't cause any serious damage to it. Once the attack subsides, Kiba is seen on the ground, trying to pick himself back up. He seems to be paralyzed from the electricity he suffered. "He should be fine. The lightning he suffered will prevent him from moving anytime soon though."

"Winner, Naruto." Hayate says, holding his hand up to the young Uzumaki. Naruto smiles as he places his hand on his knees, tired from fighting in this battle. He then walks towards the steps, breathing in and out as he moves on.

'How come my fights are harder than everyone else's?' Naruto asks himself as he heads up the stairs.

"Naruto-kun…are you okay?" Hinata asks him as he comes up.

"Yeah. Just a little tired. But I've got tons of stamina, so it's alright!" He says to her with a smile. Hinata then notices his sharp canines again, having seen them since that day they went through training together. It was a taijutsu match, but Naruto did have those teeth. It's strange because he didn't before that mission in Nami. "Will you be alright? This next match will have you in it, so good luck."

"Naruto-kun, thank you." Hinata says to him, a small blush appearing on her face. She then frowns when she realizes who's left; Neji Hyuga.

Sakura watches the two friends converse, and could easily depict the girl's feelings for him. But she sighs in depression as she realizes that the blond already has a woman by his side. Neither of them could have Naruto if they wanted to.

"Will Neji Hyuga and Hinata Hyuga please come down?" Hayate says, as Hinata and her cousin Neji come down from above.

Things didn't seem to work here on Hinata's behalf. Even with Naruto siding with her, giving her the confidence to fight back at him, she eventually loses her ability to use chakra. The Jyuuken style Neji used against her was much stronger than hers, since he has done a better job spotting the chakra points in people's bodies, like Haku only he can see them constantly. Hinata was defeated, and taken to the infirmary.

With all this over, Naruto, Sakura, Dosu, Temari, Neji, Gaara, Kankuro, Haku, Samui, Shikamaru, and Shino all come down to the battlefield before the Hokage. With Sasuke still resting he couldn't make it.

"To all who have past in this part of the exams, congratulations to you all! Even if one is missing." The Hokage says, noticing Sasuke's absence. "As I told you before, in the main event your matches will be viewed by all. Each of you will fight to represent the strengths of your countries. I'd like you all to show off your abilities without reserves…that is why the finals shall be held one month from now."

"We're not going to do it now!?" Naruto asks in a rude voice.

"This is more like a preparations than a rest." – Sandaime

"What do you mean?" Neji asks him.

"In addition to informing all the various country lords and shinobi leaders, this is the time needed to arrange for the gathering of the event." Sarutobi states. He then takes out his pipe and lights it. "This is the time period where you will calculate your chances of winning by analyzing the data you took from this trial competition. We had you fight as if you were in an actual combat situation, and battling an unknown enemy.

"After all, I'm sure none of you would have guessed the other would be fighting against someone who could control sand, or another who could eat and roar electricity." As he says this everyone turns his or her attention to Naruto and Gaara. Sakura looks up into the stands, and sees that Kakashi has disappeared. The Hokage continues with, "Also, there are some people who have used all their aces and showed them to their rivals, and now desire new ones. Not to mention you might all still be badly injured. This one month should be used to advance and improve your own self."

"And so, before we can send you off, we will have you each take a piece of paper from this box here." Anko says, holding up a box full of paper. "I'll come around, so wait your turn."

Anko comes around to everyone, from Haku to Dosu, and each one takes a piece of paper, which should have a number on it. Afterwards, in which only one paper is left inside, Ibiki comes up with a clipboard and pen. The Hokage then says, "Now, from left to right, state the number you have on your paper."

Haku - 3

Kankuro - 5

Naruto - 1

Samui - 11

Temari - 8

Neji - 2

Sakura - 4

Shino - 6

Gaara - 10

Shikamaru - 7

Dosu - 12

"Then that just leaves Sasuke Uchiha, who will take the number 9." Ibiki says, continuing his writing on the clipboard. "And now for the match arrangements."

'That's what that was for?' Shikamaru complains silently.

Ibiki shows everyone the drawing he made, which is just like a normal match design. First in the fight is Naruto against Neji. Second will be Haku vs Sakura. Third is Kankuro and Shino with fourth leading to Shikamaru and Temari. Fifth is Sasuke and Gaara, and finally Samui and Dosu.

Shino has no opinion towards it.

Dosu seems upset at how long he has to wait.

Temari figures the match is just like a regular tournament.

Samui has no opinion towards it, still thinking about Naruto and how she'll break it to her clan.

Shikamaru is mad he has to fight a girl again.

Kankuro's glad he doesn't have to fight Gaara anytime soon.

Gaara is only focused on Sasuke.

Sakura pales thinking about how she'll have to fight Haku.

Haku sighs, wondering how he can damage her the least.

Neji is glad about his match up, believing he can be able to pass through without much trouble.

Naruto looks at Neji, and a little sweat comes down his face.

"Now, we shall pick up with this in one month. I advise you use that time wisely. And just remember…" The Hokage begins, blowing out of his pipe. "This isn't just a normal tournament. There will be those watching the fight that will be viewing the fights and judging your abilities. Those worthy enough will become Chuunin, even if they lose their first fight."

"So, there's a possibility that all of us can become Chunin?" Sakura asks the Hokage.

"Yes, that is true. But at the same time, none of you could become Chunin." He replies, turning to the young girl, who is probably the weakest of them all. He then walks away, stating, "You are all dismissed."

As they all begin to leave out, Naruto's mind goes through this final part. He wouldn't defeat Neji as easily as Kiba, and even with all that electricity he ate he couldn't control the flow correctly. It is now that he realizes that he would have to get professional help, and heads to the Hokage to catch up with him.

Naruto grips the old man's coat and asks, "Jiji! Have you seen Manabu, Kakashi-sensei or Mei around?"

"Well, Kakashi should be with his other student Sasuke. Mizukage-dono must be in her apartment suite for her stay." He replies, making no mention of Manabu. This depresses Naruto a little, since the man is the closest thing he has to a living relative. The Hokage notices Naruto's sadness, and concludes with, "I'm sorry. He hasn't made any contact with us as of yet."

"I see…" Naruto says in a sad voice, walking off to go train. Samui watches as he leaves, being the only other genin to stick around after being dismissed.

--

"Can I see Sasuke Uchiha?" Naruto asks the counter girl at the hospital.

"He can't receive any visitors today." The girl says, pissing him off.

"What?!" – Naruto

"Naruto, be quiet. This is a hospital." Naruto turns around and sees his silver haired mentor behind him. "Let me guess…you're here for me and not Sasuke, right?"

"Yeah! I need real hard training!" Naruto says to him

"I can't. I have to help Sasuke with his match against Gaara." The jonin says to the little boy. He frowns at his words. "After all, you saw what that boy did to Lee."

"Yeah…but then against with what Neji did to Hinata…oh well." Naruto says as he turns around and walks off.

"I have, however, picked out someone who can help with your training." Naruto turns around after hearing him say that. Kakashi then motions to a person coming out of the hall and standing towards them. "Meet Ebisu-sensei."

Naruto looks up at the guy, noticing that he has dark glasses over his eyes and looks like a future pedophile. "Have I seen you before?"

"Nope, you probably haven't." Ebisu says, fixing his glasses onto his face.

"Ebisu-sensei here is a special jonin who specializes in teaching the elite. He will be a much better teacher than me for you." Kakashi explains to Naruto, who groans in disappointment.

'How can someone I never met before be a better teacher than someone I was assigned to at the very beginning of my promotion? Oh well…' Naruto then follows Ebisu outside the hospital, leaving Kakashi alone at the hospital.

'Don't worry Naruto. You're in good hands.' – Kakashi

--

"Hiyaah!" Sakura is seen beating down on a punching log with her legs, since those are her most powerful body parts. Since her next fight is against Haku she needs as much training as possible.

Before she continues, Sakura stops as the image of her teammate flashes through her mind and causes her to blush. The thing is, it was Naruto instead of Sasuke. This blush is much stronger than normal, and she couldn't help but like thinking about him.

'Why am I gaining feelings for him? Why now? He already has a woman, so he doesn't need me.' Sakura convinces herself, trying to focus on her training and not her friend, which she isn't suppose to have feelings for.

--

"So, why are we here?" Naruto asks the shades wearing jonin. It seems they've gone to some hot springs, or onsen, someplace near the south of the village. The young blond has come here before with Manabu, but that time someone broke in and stole their belongings. So they had to locate and beat down the guy who robbed them, all while in towels.

"We're gonna try a training exercise; walking on water." Ebisu says to the young boy. He gives a confused expression as he listens to him. "I've heard you mastered the wall walking exercise before. This is essentially the same, except you are to constantly expel the same amount from the bottom of your feet. This is much more difficult than the previous, but worth it for doing specific jutsus that demands a specific amount of chakra."

Ebisu then demonstrates to Naruto how to walk on water, by injecting chakra to his feet and stepping out on the hot spring water. Naruto gasps in amazement as he easily steps over water without sinking a single inch.

"That looks too easy." Naruto says in a cocky voice. He holds his hands together to form chakra to his feet, which stays as chakra and not converted into electricity. He then steps out on water to accomplish this task.

He immediately sinks underwater.

"I figured as much." Ebisu says as he watches Naruto plunge. The ninja then pops up out of the water, screaming in pain.

"Hot! Hot! Hot!" Naruto pulls himself onto dry land, still feeling the effects of the super heated spring.

"I didn't say this earlier, but this bath is over 60 degrees. That should motivate you to succeed." The teacher says to him. Naruto grumbles under his breath, seeing how sadistic this guy really is.

He gets up and tries it a second time. He fails once again in staying up and gets fried some more. After getting out he tries it again, and this time only his feet sink underneath. Ebisu continues to watch Naruto's progress, amazed at how quick he got the basics down.

The special jonin looks to the left and notices someone beside the bathhouse. This wouldn't be much of a big deal, except it was the women's bathing house. For a person to do something like that would obviously make them a peeping tom, the second worse kind of pervert. Ebisu rushes towards the white haired voyeur and says, "Hey! Get away from there!"

"Huh?" The guy turns around to look at who has caught him, revealing himself to be an old man, and sighs. He then presses his hand to the ground, and a giant toad pops up and attacks Ebisu with its tongue. This knocks him out in one shot. "Sheesh! Keep quiet. You know what will happen if we get caught?"

Naruto looks onward and spots the two, realizing he's a ninja. His interest peaks when he spots the summoning technique. 'That technique!'

Naruto then sinks into the water, losing concentration and getting burned by the water. The old man then calls his toad away and turns to the bathhouse. Naruto drags himself back onto land, and his attention goes onto the old man. He walks silently up to him, and asks, "What are you doing?"

"Huh? Oh, I'm performing research! I need some of the loveliest ladies in my new novel." He says to him, keeping his eyes on the prize, if you know what he means.

Naruto raises a brow in confusion. "Series? Whatever…look, I was wondering if you could-"

"Ooh! A light-skinned, red headed babe just checked in!" He squeals silently. Naruto's ears perk up when he hears the words 'red head'. He can only think of two red heads that he knows: Karui and Mei. Since this person is light-skinned there's a good chance she might be his fiancée.

Naruto takes a look inside, and gasps when he sees that there's really a red head wearing a towel inside. He also recognizes her form and figure, and once she turns around he could tell it really is Mei. Naruto then pulls himself back away from the side of the bathhouse, slowly walking away to leave the old man to his work. With his calm expression and stature, you would think he's okay with it.

He's not.

Naruto creeps up behind the old man, drawing the Twilight Star. He then positions himself in a golf stance. He lifts his sword up to his right, and slams it to the left. This creates an explosion that rockets the pervert into the women's bathing area.

The old pervert's head sticks all the way inside the building, and the explosion grasps the attention of the girls. They gasp when they see him, who pales when they all look at him.

Five Minutes Later…

The old man now hangs over the outside of the bathhouse, roped and tied over a lamppost. All the women, except for Mei, left him to hang in misery. The Mizukage then walks over water towards the dangling pervert, staring at his bloody and bruised face.

"And just what were you doing here?" Mei asks the old man.

"Well…let's just say I was…performing research…" He replies, trying to wiggle free.

"For your erotic novels? I know all about those perverted novels of yours, Gama-Sennin Jiraiya. What you're doing is nothing but peeping, which is illegal in this village." The Mizukage says to the old man. He looks down at the woman, focusing his attention on her face and not her wet, clingy towel. "It's bad enough you try to peep. Getting caught is even more gutsy."

"I wouldn't have if it weren't for that damn kid over there!" Jiraiya says, looking down a set of springs at the orange ninja working on his water exercise. Mei turns to look at him, and gasps when she realizes it's her fiancé Naruto.

"Naruto!" Mei calls out to him. Naruto looks back when he hears his name called out, and sinks underwater immediately. Mei quickly makes a water clone, and sends it over to him. The clone dives underwater and pulls Naruto out, the towel it gained from its creation coming off while submerged. Naruto blushes as he looks up at Mei, his face pressed against her well-endowed breasts. He then drags himself out and gets to land, while the clone dissolves into water. The real Mei then asks, "Naruto, are you the one who caught this guy?"

"Yeah. This guy looked like he deserved it." Naruto says, pointing to Jiraiya. As he walks up to the woman and her hanging victim, Mei reaches out and hugs him when in reach.

"Aw, that's so sweet of you to do! I knew my future husband would become such a good boy!" She exclaims happily, hugging the boy affectionately. She then releases him when she realizes something. "But what are you doing here anyway?"

"I've been brought here by that guy over there." Naruto says. He then points to Ebisu lying down beside the bathhouse where the hole is. "He was teaching me how to walk on water when he got jacked by that guy up there! So I busted him."

"So that's what's going on…" Mei then looks up at him, and then goes back at Naruto. "Naruto, do you know who he is?"

"Nope. This is the first time I've seen him. Why?" Naruto answers, wondering how this guy can be so important.

"He's Mt. Myoboku's Toad master Gama-Sennin Jiraiya, not to mention one of the three Densetsu no Sannin. He was trained under the Sandaime Hokage and was the mentor of the Yondaime." Mei explains to Naruto.

Naruto's eyes brighten at those words. "He…trained him…"

"Yeah, and? It's not like I'll-"

"I want you to train Naruto, just like you trained his father." Mei says to him. She then walks over to him, standing underneath the ninja. The water below them slowly turns into lava. "If you don't, not only will I tell the Hokage you've been here, but you will face punishment by me…"

"Okay, okay, okay! I'll train him! But he has to work hard." Jiraiya says back. The water reverts back to normal, just as Mei spits at the rope holding Jiraiya up. Since it was acid spit it quickly burns off, causing Jiraiya to fall down.

"Thank you Mei! I promise to work hard!" Naruto says, heading over to them over the hot spring. But not far into the water does he sink quickly. He drags himself back onto land, his clothes completely soaked. "I can't do anything in these clothes!"

Naruto starts taking his clothes off, causing Mei to blush a bit watching him strip. But even before that she and Jiraiya seem to notice something a bit odd about his chakra. Naruto then stands back up, clad in only his boxers. The old man takes the opportunity to say, "Hey kid, pull out your chakra again."

Naruto lifts his eyebrow in confusion, and turns to Mei. She nods and says, "Just do it."

"Okay." Naruto holds his hands together to mold some chakra. Since he isn't using it to form a jutsu or release it in a single point, it doesn't turn into electricity. It is at this point that the seal on his chest becomes visible.

"The seal of the nine-tailed fox. I'm guessing the two four elephant seals are there for allowing the demon's chakra to slip out and merge with his chakra." Jiraiya whispers to Mei as they both get closer to his stomach.

"I see. Minato really wanted to protect his son…he really is a genius." Mei states in a hush voice. She then looks at the five spirals on the outside of the seal. "But those weren't there the last time I saw them."

"Yeah. An odd number seal on an even number seal would disrupt his chakra, making it harder for him to control." Jiraiya adds, standing up straight to face him. He holds his right hand behind his back as each finger flares with energy. 'I bet it was Orochimaru's doing.'

"What are you guys whispering about?" Naruto asks them, stopping his chakra collection for the moment.

"Naruto, look up there!" Jiraiya shouts instantly.

"Where?!" Naruto gullibly falls for it and looks away.

"Gogyo Kaiin!" Jiraiya slams his five fingers into Naruto's stomach, striking the five parts messing up his seal. The ninja falls down to his knees, clutching his stomach in pain. Mei looks at the seal, and sees the seal has lost the five marks.

"What was that for?!" Naruto yells at the old man.

"I hit a pressure point to make you more relax. Now try to step out on water." Jiraiya says to him. A little scared he might end up plunging again, Naruto walks out onto the hot water once more. He then smiles when he realizes that he is finally standing firmly over water.

"Wow! I don't know what's happening, but I finally got it down!" Naruto says, jumping up and down on the water with joy. Mei and Jiraiya chuckle a bit as they see he's finally gotten it down. "Mei, I did it! I finally got it down!"

"That's great, Naruto." Mei says to him, a smile present on his face.

'I think it's about time he learned how to use that fox's chakra.' Jiraiya thinks, his mind focused on him at the moment. He then looks up at the sky, and says, "It's getting late. I'll take this guy to a hospital. We'll meet here tomorrow at 9 to continue."

"Here?" Mei looks at Jiraiya with a smile. But as he looks at her, he could feel an evil, dark aura coming from her. Naruto doesn't seem to be affected by it.

"I-I mean, by the waterfalls." He corrects himself.

"Okay!" Naruto says, watching him leave with Ebisu. Mei takes Naruto's arm and smiles while looking down at him. "What?"

"I have some time left before my bodyguards worry about me. Wanna take a bath?" Mei tells her young future husband.

"Sure-wait, what? Together? In a mixed bath?" Naruto sputters, a small blush on his face.

"Of course. Don't tell me you're embarrassed. We are getting married, so it's only natural that we learn to be closer to one another." She states, walking with him to dry land. After he gets his clothes on they go to the bathhouse to get a single's room.

--

"Lariat!" Killer Bee shouts as he strikes Samui with his right arm. She blocks with her odaichi, and crashes back into a wall. "Now, now, don't be chillin' on your back! You gotta get up and charge forth! Make an attack!"

"Shit!" Samui charges her blade with electricity and charges at her mentor.

"It's rather annoying to hear Killer Bee-sama rhyming as he talks." Omoi says as he watches the two ninjas battle on Konoha battleground. He then looks around and realizes Karui isn't around. "Where is she?"

Meanwhile, Haku is busy working on performing jutsus with only one hand. Such a task would be better than the normal way of doing it with one hand. As he works on these jutsus, Karui watches him from within the trees.

--

"Naruto, how do you feel?" Mei asks her beloved fiancé. She and Naruto are submerged halfway underwater in a hot spring. Since it is a private bath no one else would be around.

"It feels great in here." He replies, blushing a bit as he looks away from her.

Mei reaches out and hugs the boy, bringing them closer together. Naruto blushes even more as he feels her naked soft skin on his. "It's okay, Naruto. I don't mind you being around me. It's good to spend a little intimacy with the ones you love."

"Love…" The words go through Naruto's mind as he looks at her. His mind instantly goes to Mei when he hears those words, but beside her Sakura and Hinata show up as well. "Mei, did Jiji ever tell you about my clan, and that I need to marry other girls?"

"Yes, I was told. I'm okay with it." At her words his eyes instantly go up. He looks up to her, about to ask what she meant, but she interjects by continuing with, "When I was told I would be arranged to marry a boy who wasn't even born yet, I was a little skeptical about it. After all, I wouldn't know anything about you until you were old enough to have an ego, and I wouldn't have the chance to date other guys.

"But then I started to spend some time with your parents, and now I can see you're just as good and pure as they are. And then the bloodline war happened, and Kiri was shut off from all other countries. I heard your father and mother died, and feared that you would be hurt too…I cried…" Tears come down Mei's eyes as she thinks about the time where the Kyubi attacked and so many people died. Naruto grows sad as he senses her depression. "I felt so horrible thinking you wouldn't be around anymore, so horrible…I couldn't even reach you or the rest of Konoha because of that war. Then the Yondaime of Kiri died and that monster left…I was sworn in as the Godaime Hokage, and tried to restore contact. By the time I realized you survived, you were seven…I was so relieved…I waited until we received a message from Minato and Kushina's friend, and went to see you. I was almost in tears when I saw you.

"From then on I decided to dedicate my life to being with you, and keeping you safe from harm…but then, I also learned something…" She then stops to look down at him. Her left hand reaches up to brush his soaked hair. "If you were going to be married to me then you wouldn't understand anything about dating or being around other girls. And that would be selfish, for all the girls who may like you and those you may like. I didn't care that I wouldn't have any men in my life around my age, as long as I have you. So in that regard, I won't mind if you can fall in love with other girls. You have a big heart after all, just like your father."

"Wow…you really do love me." Naruto comments, a smile present on his face.

"Of course. Have you, found a girl yet?" She asks him, her left hand index finger drawing circles on his chest.

"Well, I do have feelings for my friend Sakura. She has a crush on my other teammate Sasuke though, so it might not work out…" He begins, thinking over the girls in his life. "There's also Hinata. I have a feeling she may like me, I think I do though…and there is this other girl from Kumo."

"Kumo? Are you referring to that team from Kumo?" Mei asks him, the images of the three swords ninja coming up.

"Yeah. She said because I disgraced her. It was a total accident though!" He says, causing her to chuckle a bit.

"Just how was it an accident?" – Mei

"I was ambushed by her and her team, and I was trying to run away. I only wanted to touch a part of her body to stun her for the moment. But I wasn't paying much attention, and I ended up grabbing her breasts. I was also forced to fighting her so she could reclaim her honor by killing me, and because I won I had to either kill her or marry her. You can tell what I did." Naruto explains to the girl. He then looks up into her eyes, and realizes she's still laughing. "You're not mad at me?"

"No. I'll have to deal with the girl first, but don't be so scared of me. There's nothing you can do that will upset me. Because I love you, Naruto." She then leans down and plants a quick peck on his lips. After quick removal she could see the blush on his face growing larger than ever. The one on her face is similar in appearance. "I always will."

"Mei…" Naruto whispers, and then nuzzles close to her. Mei leans her head down on his, and the two peacefully enjoy their time alone.

After Naruto and Mei exit the bathhouse, she walks him to his home. There she would help him rest for the next day's training. He allows her entry, having the security register her so it wouldn't attack her, and both of them enter the home. Mei digs into the top of her dress and pulls out a small slip.

"What's this?" Naruto asks her as she gives him it.

"It's a chakra paper. This is made from a special tree that are grown and fed with chakra that will react to your special affinity. By injecting your chakra into it, the paper will make one of five reactions to the slightest hint." Mei explains to him. Naruto takes the paper and holds it up, and then looks her into the eyes. "If your affinity is fire, the paper will ignite and turn to ash. If your affinity is water then the paper will damp. If you own earth the paper will turn into dust. If lightning the paper crumbles. Wind will cut it in two."

"Okay." Naruto then places the piece of paper on the floor, and leans down to inject chakra into it. Mei leans down as well, intentionally giving him a great view of her cleavage. Even with this distraction Naruto imputs his chakra into the paper. Not long after doing so does the paper split in two halves. This intrigues Mei and shocks Naruto, for he always thought he would have an affinity to lightning. But before they could make any reaction, the twin pieces of paper crumble up. "What's that mean?"

"Well, since wind is superior to lightning, it must have been revealed first. It then must have sensed your other greatest affinity and forced the remaining two pieces to react to it." Mei states to him.

"Wow, so I'm a wind and lightning wave dragon. I think I'll be a great sky dragon!" Naruto cheers with confident. Mei smiles as she looks at him.

"Well, that's just great. I'll see you later, Naruto." Mei reaches out and places her hands onto his cheeks. She then leans in to kiss him bye. Naruto returns the kiss as best as he could, causing her to moan slightly into it. By doing so she accidentally unleashes her acid bloodline, and burns his cheeks.

"AH!" Naruto pulls away from her in pain, rubbing his burnt cheeks.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Are you okay?!" She asks him, showing great worry in what she did to him. This isn't the first time she's lost control of her bloodlines, but this is the first time a kiss did so. Although, being as she has never kissed another man before, this would be a first.

"I'm okay. I'm a quick healer." Naruto replies, putting a smile on his face. This helps Mei bring a smile to hers, and she hugs him dearly.

"Thank goodness…" – Mei

That Night…

11 p.m. into the night, and most of Konoha has already gone to sleep. On top of Naruto's home estate, where he himself is fast asleep, stand Ebisu and Jiraiya.

"So, no hard feelings about what I did back then?" Jiraiya asks the special jonin.

"Not at all! I was just surprised is all…Hokage-sama has been looking for you though." Ebisu replies, bringing the Sannin to sigh and cross his arms under his chest.

"So it's about Orochimaru…to be honest, I'm not here for that. I only returned to work on my novels…and check up on the little brat." He says, causing Ebisu to look at him in shock. "I have no interest in fighting."

"You can't be serious! Against one of the Three Sannin it is best that another one of them should be on our forces! That person is you!" – Ebisu

Elsewhere in the night-cloaked town, Gaara of the Desert can be seen on top of a building, not sleeping apparently. It would seem those dark circles around his eyes are there for a reason, and not just for makeup.

Dosu approaches the sand ninja, holding his gauntlet with care. "Damn. What's wrong with you? Don't you ever sleep?"

"What are you doing here?" The red headed ninja asks him, looking down at the sound ninja.

"You're going up against Sasuke Uchiha. I want to fight him, so I'll make sure you go away to increase my chances." Dosu says to him, glaring at the ninja above. Gaara says nothing. "Let's see which is quicker, your sand or my sound?"

"When the moon is full, his blood stirs." Gaara stands up to his feet, his shadow spreading down to Dosu thanks to the statue he's standing on. His shadow grows larger as well, responding to his form getting bigger. Dosu gasps when he looks up at the monster above him.

"What…what the hell are you!?"

--

9 o'clock a.m., and Naruto is walking towards the waterfall. There he spots the perverted sennin peeping on two girls in their bikinis. Naruto drops the scroll he was carrying and draws the Twilight Star. Just as he prepares to use Gilgamesh, Jiraiya turns around towards him. "Oh, you're here."

"Can I ask that you not turn me into you while I'm training with you?" Naruto asks him, finding his peeping rather offending.

"Oh fine, for now…" Jiraiya turns his attention away from the girls to the young ninja. He then notices the scroll, and asks, "What's that?"

"This is the Yamata summoning scroll. I want to sign it and summon the reptiles inside." Naruto says as he picks up the scroll he got from Mei back when he was 7. Jiraiya takes the scroll and opens it, seeing the boy's name written inside. "You know the summoning technique right? I would like to learn it!"

Jiraiya closes the scroll and looks up at him. He then smiles as he looks at him. 'Already he wants to try the hard techniques. He has two types of chakra, and with them he can learn jutsus that demand lots of chakra, and still have energy for more.'

"Alright, we'll try the technique. Cut your thumb so you can get some blood out." Naruto takes his right thumb and bites onto it with his canines. "Now, with the hand you wrote your name down with, produce chakra and do the boar, dog, bird, monkey and sheep hand signs and press it down below you."

Naruto performs the mentioned hand seals, and holds his hand down, shouting, "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

This technique produces a cloud of smoke, and out from the smoke pops a baby salamander. Naruto's' jaw drops as he looks down at the lizard. All that, and he got a loser infant? Even Jiraiya seems surprised, as his thoughts go to, 'A baby salamander? He really is a no talent brat.'

"I'll try again!" And he does try again, but each summoning he comes up with a baby snake, a baby gecko, or a baby gator. Things don't seem to be going well.

* * *

Kenshin: This ends chapter 8. In the next chapter, Naruto summons the boss-summon, or one of them, and Naruto faces off against Neji.

Yusei: Also, Naruto speaks with the demon inside of him. He's a little bit scared at first, but he gets over it.

Ester: Where's Manabu? He hasn't appeared at all since chapter 4!

Kenshin: Well…I'm not sure where he is. I hope we find out soon.


	9. Demon Slayer Part 1

_**Naruto and The Water Princess**_

Disclaimer: I do not own the following: Naruto, Fairy Tail, Rave, or Static Shock.

Kenshin: In this chapter we start the main events of the Chunin exams, but first some things need to be deal with.

Sora: Where is my grandson?

Kenshin: Dad! What are you doing here?!

Sora: I only came to visit my grandson. Why hasn't he appeared since Wave?

Yusei: Well, the thing is, he's disappeared because of the plot, and we can't reveal that yet.

Sora: Damn it! Let's get this over with! Start the omake!

Omake –

"You're finished, Naruto! Nothing you do will stop me!" Sasuke says to his former best friend in a cocky attitude. Him and Naruto are standing at a huge battlefield, with the Uchiha shown to be fine while Naruto is tired out of his mind.

"Maybe not alone, but together," A voice shouts, gathering their attention. Up from above, four people flip down to where they are. Beside Naruto now are Mei Terumi from Kiri, A Yotsuki from Kumo, Onoki from Iwa, and Gaara from Kaze. "We can take you down."

"Mei! Gaara!" Naruto says to his two friends. He is indifferent to the other two.

"You didn't really think we'd let you handle this by yourself, right?" Mei questions the Hokage in a flirting manner.

"Stay focus, you youngins! We have a ninja to disperse of." The Tsuchikage says to them.

"You will suffer the wrath of Nindou Shadourangers!" Yotsuki says to the Uchiha.

Each Kage holds up their right arm, revealing a Power Morpher on their arms. Naruto's is red, Mei's is blue, Gaara's is green, A's is yellow and Onoki's is black. Each ninja bites their left hand's thumb and wipes their blood on the morphers. They then each shout, "Ninja Sentai no Jutsu!"

A ray of light envelops each Kage, transforming them accordingly into Power Rangers. They look just like the Alien Rangers from the show.

"Tsuchi Ranger 5 Black!" – Onoki

"Raikou Ranger 4 Yellow!" – A

"Kaze Ranger 3 Green!" – Gaara

"Mizu Ranger 2 Blue!" – Mei

"Hono Ranger 1 Red!" – Naruto

"Nindou Shadorangers!" - Everyone

* * *

_**Chapter 9: Demon Chakra Chloroform!**_

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Naruto creates a cloud of smoke to summon an animal to this world, but he makes an infant gecko this time. He then starts yelling, "What the hell am I doing wrong?!!"

"Wow…this babe is great." Jiraiya whispers as he looks at some girls through a bush. They seem to be playing by the waterfall.

"WHY CAN'T YOU BE MORE SUPPORTIVE?!?!" Naruto screams in anger at the old man. His lids slowly close over his eyes, and he falls to the ground, passing out.

"This isn't going very well." Jiraiya says, looking at Naruto's latest failed attempt at summoning a mature creature. He also notices that he's passed out as well. "Well, with these 21 days of working on this jutsu, and trying to pull out the Kyubi's chakra, he's been unable to succeed."

The old man gets up and walks over to the boy, picking him up and carrying him elsewhere. 'His body is clearly too small to handle the chakra of the greatest of the nine beasts. It would seem there are certain keys needed to unlocking it…If emotional distress and danger are the only things that will help him grasp the energy he needs, then this is the only way.'

Twenty-one days have past since the qualifications for the Chunin Exams ended. Everyone in the tournament that would happen at the end of seven days from now have put themselves through hell in perfecting their techniques. While Sakura has used her time in working her physical strength, she hasn't had time to work on a specific jutsu of her own, and her training didn't lead to any good results. It wouldn't matter how strong she got, for Haku could shut her down without trouble.

Sasuke and Naruto were the only ones participating that she didn't run into. She wanted to speak with the blond about her feelings, and she was worried about the Uchiha. Sakura also had a run in with the Mizukage, and they conversed about how Mei cares about Naruto. She never told her about the CRA he's under.

The old man lands before a cliff, dropping Naruto on the ground. Naruto picks himself up and looks around, before noticing Jiraiya above him. "What are we doing here?"

"Your summoning training ends today. If you want to live figure it out yourself." He says to him. Naruto only looks up at him in confusion before being flicked away on the forehead. The boy falls all the way past the cliff, and realizes it's really a ravine.

Naruto screams in terror as he falls down to the ground. He looks at his hip and sees the Twilight Star is gone; he must have forgotten it back home. Although even with the sword things wouldn't have been much better. Naruto spots a rock attached to the side close by, and his hand becomes surrounded by chakra. He reaches out and grabs the rock, but slips off without any resistance.

"The sides have been polished too slippery for you to grab, and a little chakra won't help you at the speed you're falling." Jiraiya says quietly. He continues to watch Naruto fall, a little bit of sweat falling down his face.

'At this rate…I'll die…' – Naruto

--

Naruto falls down into a sewer pipeline, the ground around him wet with sewage. He looks around and realizes that he's still alive, in a way. 'How'd I get here?'

He then hears a loud growling noise coming down the halls. Naruto turns his attention to it and gets himself up. He walks down the sewer lines towards the noise, his heart pounding hard as he thinks about what it could be. 'I know this feeling…it's just like those other times.'

Naruto stops before a large set of bars. He continues down along the bars until he reaches the center, and reaches the conclusion that this is actually a gate. On the gate is a talisman, with the kanji for seal on it. 'What's this for? Is there some horrible beast inside?'

A set of eyes and a large row of sharp teeth appear before him, towering over the boy. He could see the eyes are red with slits. The being then says, "Hey, boy…come…"

Naruto listens to the fox, like the idiot he is, and gets closer to the cage. But before he could say something back, the creature lunges its claws at him, scaring Naruto to back off. "I want to scrape your blood off my teeth…damn seal…"

"I get it now…you're the Kyubi no Yoko." Naruto says, recognizing the figure finally. The fox comes closer to the gate, and Naruto could get a better look at the creature's eyes, teeth, mouth, nose and whiskers. 'That explains all those other times I felt an amazing energy…it was all coming from him.'

"For twelve years you've lived, for five you've known of my presence, and yet you stop by now of all times? Now when you're about to die, you want to come by and visit? What do you want?" The fox asks the boy.

Naruto glares at the fox with a confident expression. "That's right; I haven't visited you in ever, because I don't like you. You're the reason I was put through so much terrible stuff, and it's your fault my father died! So you can start making it up to me, by giving me your chakra whenever I desire as rent!"

The Kyubi pauses for a moment to look at the boy, and the top jaw of its mouth rises. It then laughs. "Mao ha ha ha ha ha! Mao ha ha! In the event that you die, I would normally be free, but this seal has me connected to you, so I will die as well. Threatening me is entertainment enough, so enjoy!!"

Red chakra seeps through the bottom of the gates, and wraps around Naruto.

--

Naruto blinks, and sees that he is falling down the ravine like before. He then smirks when he feels something inside of him. 'This is it!'

The ninja bites his right thumb and begins to perform the hand signs. He then holds it down before him. Smoke appears below him and takes form, as he yells, "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

Out from the smoke pops a giant alligator, or crocodile, appears below him, stretching its arms and legs out to keep from falling. The boy leaps up into the air with joy, shouting, "Yeah! I finally did it!"

"Huh? Where am I?" Naruto looks down at the reptile, and notices from the snout that it's a crocodile. The croc's eyelids insert inside the sockets, allowing it to look behind it and ahead. He then spots Naruto and asks, "Who are you?"

"I'm Naruto. I summoned you!" He says to the reptile.

'So he managed to do it…but, he did use too much and summoned one of the two boss summons of the Yamata…Ordile.' Jiraiya says in his mind. He then disappears in a flash, leaving him to the gator.

"You must be joking! Some punk kid summoned me?! Give me a break!! Gura ra ra ra ra!" Ordile laughs, taunting and upsetting the ninja.

Naruto sparks with electricity all over, and points his right hand index finger at him while shouting, "Hey!! Who do you think you are telling me I can't summon you?!! Besides, since I summoned you the least you can do is listen to what I say!"

Ordile growls as he looks at the boy. "What the? Who in the hell are you to tell ME what to do?!! I am the great crocodile of the Yamato, Ordile-sama!!"

"Look, we can go on and on about who listens to who, or you can climb up and take us out of here. What'll it be?" Naruto says to the croc.

"YOU WANT YOUR HEAD RIPPED OFF!?!" Ordile roars, almost knocking Naruto off. His tongue then stretches out and wraps around Naruto. He then increases his hold on the sides of the ravine and jumps up, landing on the cliff Naruto fell off from. "NOW, BEAT IT!!"

Ordile tosses Naruto into the air, and smacks him away with his tail. Naruto sails all the way into the sky, before crashing into the ground. Luckily for him he ends up before the hospital. With him gone Ordile disappears in a puff of smoke.

Three Days Later…

_Naruto is falling through a flowing sea of darkness. He feels naked and alone in the darkness around him. His eyes pick up the image of a man in the dark distance. This person's body couldn't be seen completely due to his silhouette, but Naruto could pick out his eyes and a necklace around his neck. His eyes has several rings around them, while his necklace owns six red magatama. He also seems to have horns on his head, or what looks like hair._

_A bright light releases from this person, but not enough to show his presence. Out from behind him extend ten tails. These tails wrap together and come to form a ball. It then flies up into the air, heading past the atmosphere into space._

"Guwaah!" Naruto shouts, opening his eyes so he could wake up. He looks around to see he's in the hospital. "Oh, it was another dream…but like that last dream…it has ten tails…"

He picks himself up to get dressed, and prepares to head out and continue his training. As far as he remembers, and from looking at the calender each room possesses, he could tell that he only has a few days before the Chunin Exams begin.

"Is Naruto Uzumaki in?" Samui asks a hospital counter girl. She looks up and begins to search through the names, until she reaches his.

"Yes. He's in Room 23, down the hall." She says, pointing down the hallway. Samui casually walks down the hall to meet with that person.

By the time she reaches the room, Samui sees that Naruto is already awake and getting dressed. She lightly knocks on the door, gaining his attention. Naruto turns to the door and says, "Come in!"

Samui enters the room and approaches Naruto, who is a little bit confused at why she is here. "Samui? How did you know I was here?"

"Naruto, I am here to take you to meet with my team leader Killer Bee. I've been trying to look for you for the past two weeks after finishing training, and I couldn't find you." She says to the boy. He lifts his left eyebrow in confusion and looks at her.

"Why do I have to meet with your team leader?" Naruto asks the girl.

"Because I am now enslaved to you, Killer Bee wants to know who was strong enough to put me to shame." Samui replies as she steps before the blond. She then bows before him in a respectable manner.

"Enslaved? I thought I was married to you!" – Naruto

"It's essentially the same thing." She replies.

"Well, it shouldn't!" Naruto says to her. Instead of replying she grabs his arm and takes him away, going to meet her master.

"Wait! Hold on!" He shouts, but it was too late. She is already on her way out the door, taking him to their team's training spot.

Naruto and Samui come before the team leader Killer Bee. He frowns while looking down at him, and says, "You gotta be kidding? This is the guy? He looks like a bright orange target in the sky!"

"Huh?" Naruto says.

"This is Killer Bee, our team leader. He has a tendency to rhyme and make up raps, even when fighting." Samui says to the boy. He looks at him and frowns.

"He's a ninja rapper?" – Naruto

"That's right. Here you go." Killer Bee hands Naruto a bright yellow scroll, and he takes and unravels it.

'He didn't rhyme then!' Naruto reads over the scroll and its contents. "Naruto Uzumaki, you have initiated the Kikon process on Samui here. Because you have you are forced to take care of Samui here until either she defeats you in battle or one of you dies. We leave her in your hands. Raikage A." Naruto reads, and sighs knowing he's been defeated. Now that it's been officially made legal by the Kage, he feels a little upset. "Well, I guess I have no choice this time. But where do I go from here?"

"I'll situate myself into Konoha with you when the Chunin Exams are over." Samui tells the boy.

"Fine. Good luck in the finals! I need to show this to Jiji!" Naruto says with a sigh, heading off with his electric-powered feet.

"What's with you?" Killer Bee asks the woman. Once again he doesn't seem to rhyme.

"Nothing. Nothing at all." She says, walking away with her cold stare still intact.

'That boy for some reason has an air around him. It reminds me, of me. Oh well! Time to go get some eats, yeah!' – Killer Bee

Day of The Chunin Exams…

The day has finally arrived: the day of the Chunin Exams. All of the ninjas, or most of them, have taken time off to enter the stadium with their civilian cohorts to watch the fights. Up in the stands, where the Kages sit, Hokage Sarutobi is seen sitting in his seat with his bodyguards.

In the stands Sakura watches as the ninja genin below gather. She, herself, isn't with them. She knows how powerful Haku is, and didn't want to be brutally ravaged by him. In fact, the only ninjas down there are Gaara, Temari, Shino, Kankuro, Haku, Samui, Neji and Shikamaru.

"Naruto and Sasuke aren't here yet." Sakura says in a quiet voice. Naruto's match would be starting soon, and he isn't around.

Mizukage Mei walks up to meet with Sarutobi, and sees that Naruto is still gone. 'Where are you, Naruto?'

'That Dosu guy isn't around either.' Samui's thoughts go onto the missing sound ninja. Since they would be fighting it is only natural she focuses on the guy.

Speaking of Naruto, he seems to be on top of the Hokage Tower. From there he could clearly spot the stadium. Naruto injects electricity to his feet and draws the Twilight Star. He transforms it into Kuro Getsuga, feeling himself light already. After increasing the electricity on his legs to maximum, Naruto jumps high up in the air, busting up the rock floor he used to fly off.

Naruto could feel the wind blowing through his body as he flies across the skies. He looks down up ahead to see the stadium not too far up. It's only going to take a few seconds until he reaches it.

Soon Naruto starts descending, aiming to go right down in front of the stadium entrance. He crash-lands into the dirt, and continues slipping through the ground until he makes it into the stadium, where all the other genin are. Shikamaru looks down and says, "Oh, there you are, Naruto."

"Well, at least Naruto made it." Sakura says, still a little depressed her friend Sasuke didn't make it.

Naruto picks himself up and dusts off the dirt, before looking up at his cohorts. The ninja sheaths away his blade and cracks some of his bones. 'Let's see, we're all here…except for that guy and Sasuke.'

"Hey, quit gawking around." The ninja referee, Genma, says to him. He then points up to the stands. "You guys are the stars in this main tournament."

'Where is Sasuke Uchiha? Kakashi was suppose to bring him here!' The Hokage thinks as he looks down at the genin.

"We'll have to start without him." The Mizukage says to him. She then looks down the hall and spots another one of her equals: the Kazekage. "Ah, look who showed up?"

"Kazekage-dono, you've arrived. I hope the trip wasn't too difficult for you." The Hokage says to the wind shadow.

"Not at all, Hokage-dono. Although you should make a successor, since you look a little bit taken by time." The Kazekage says to him. As he sits down he glances at the Sand ninjas below, and their team leader Baki.

"Oh, heavens no! Not for another 5 years, maybe." The Hokage then picks himself up, and looks down at everyone below him. "Gentleman, and ladies, behold! The Mizukage, the Kazekage, and I bring you the Hidden Leaf Chunin Exams! We will now begin the tournament concerning the 10 genin before us! And please, stay and watch until the end!"

"10? One seems to be missing." – Kazekage

"Hey, before we begin, there are some last minute changes you should know." Genma says, holding out to everyone the new match listing.

Naruto and Neji will participate in the first match. Shino and Kankuro will be battling in the second match. Temari and Shikamaru will take part in the third, and Gaara and Sasuke will face one another in the fourth. Haku and Samui will fight in the last match.

"Please check and make sure you know who you're fighting." Genma tells the genin. He then takes out a toothpick and starts chewing on it.

'What happened to that Dosu guy?' Samui says in her mind.

"Anyway, this is the final test. The rules from the prelim apply here. One wins by either killing the other person, forcing them to submit, or I'll step in and stop the fight with my own judgment." Genma says, and then turns his attention to Neji and Naruto. "Now, will everyone except Naruto Uzumaki and Neji Hyuga go up and wait in the waiting area?"

Neji and Naruto then step out to glare at one another as the others leave. Haku would tell him good luck, except he seems too stuck in his hatred to pay attention to anything else. Genma steps back and allow the two space to battle it out.

The air tenses up as the two ninjas stare each other down. Neji then says, "You look like you want to say something to me. What is it?"

"You will pay for hurting her. That's all." Naruto replies, resting his left hand on the Twilight Star's hilt.

Neji activates his Byakugan and stares at him. 'He really means it. I guess I need to knock some sense into him.'

"Let the first match begin!" Genma announces out loud.

Neji gets himself into position while Naruto draws his sword. He transforms it into Chromedread and force spikes to extend from its blade. Neji smirks with confidence, as he says, "I can't wait until I see the look on your face when you lose. You'll see that reality is a harsh mistress and discover how worthless you really are."

"Quit your yakking and let's fight!!" Naruto shouts back, aiming his sword at him. He fires a dozen diamond spikes from his sword by swinging it, causing the Hyuga to dodge. Naruto then shapes his sword into Kuro Getsuga and charges at him. 'He has that Byakugan, so no matter where I stand, he'll see me. But if I can blind him I can make sure he doesn't see me!'

Right when he reaches Neji Naruto slams his sword down to the ground, creating an explosion due to the power of Gilgamesh. This makes a smokescreen to block their sight, although he could find his opponent with his nose. Electricity charges in his left empty fist, allowing him to slam his fist into Neji's face. But the Hyuga dodges at the last second, right where he increases the chakra in his fist.

"What?!" Naruto shouts in shock. Neji spins around and kicks the Uzumaki in the stomach, sending him back. As he rolls back the Hyuga dashes towards the boy, who stops himself finally to show he's on his hands and legs.

Naruto breathes in and exhales, releasing a blast of electricity at him. "Rairyu no Hoko!"

Neji rolls to the side to evade the attack, which blows a basketball-sized hole in the wall behind him. Naruto grits his teeth in anger, as his hands and feet charge with electricity. He then leaps at the boy, his right arm charged with lightning. "Rairyu no Naruto Lariat!"

"That's just like our attack." Samui says as she watches the battle.

Neji ducks under the attack, allowing Naruto to fly past him. He slides to his feet and draws his sword, bolting towards Neji again. "Let's see you dodge an attack made at a speed you can't see!"

He forms the Gravity Sword and begins wildly slashing at Neji. The Hyuga easily dodges the strikes with swift movements. Naruto takes hold of his weapon with both hands and makes consecutive jabs at him, but fails in this department too. Looking to end it, Neji taps on Naruto's right shoulder, causing his to gasp and jump back in fear.

"Naruto-kun," Hinata whispers as she watches the fight. The girl healed quite well after her fight with Neji, although Naruto coming to visit her all those times helped her out.

Back to the fight, Naruto aims his sword up at Neji, and then stabs it into the ground. At this rate he would never lay a finger on him. 'Maybe it's best I use Kage Bunshin.'

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Naruto crosses both his middle and index fingers together, and creates four separate clones of him. Each one draws a cloned version of the Twilight Star, making different stance.

'Kage Bunshin…so, his chakra is divided evenly between them. Even the Byakugan can't tell the difference. He's smarter than he looks.' Neji smiles as he keeps his stance. Regardless, he keeps silent as he faces Naruto.

"Don't diss me damn it!" They shout in unison. The four clones head towards Neji with their swords prepared for battle. The real Naruto forms Gilgamesh and throws it at the ground between them and Neji, creating another smokescreen.

But as they reach Neji he grabs hold of their shoulders and flips into the air, dodging their sword strikes and pushing them into the ground. He then flips over and kicks back at them into the ground, dispersing them. The other two come from behind to stab him, but he parries their blades with kunai. He then releases the kunai and grabs their wrists, backing himself up to elbow them in the face. He then turns around and strikes their chests with a double Jyuuken strike. These two fall to the ground and puff away in clouds of smoke.

'This is harder than I thought.' Naruto says in his mind as he silently walks away with the Twilight Star he threw earlier. He looks back at Neji and grows in anger.

Neji looks back at Naruto and smiles. "It was you who said it, right? You wanted to become the Hokage…everyone's power is decided at birth. My eyes can see it clearly."

"Just, what are you saying? I can't become Hokage? Where do you get off telling me what I can't do?" Naruto yells back at him. The white-eyed ninja seems to have hit a tender spot on the lightning user.

"Then with your logic anyone who goes through hard work can become Hokage. Only a handful of ninjas can reach the Kage title." Neji continues, injuring Naruto and his pride even more. "Can't you see? If you were to become Hokage you would have been born into that destiny, which you haven't. You're better off hanging up your forehead protector and becoming a civilian.

"Because in the end, the only thing everyone shares, is death." Neji finishes, glaring at him in a cold glance. Naruto growls in anger at Neji's cruel words, electricity sparking throughout his entire body. He holds his hands up into the Kage Bunshin cross, and creates a hundred clones.

"Maybe so, but I've always been a little stubborn. Let's try this!" Naruto sends his clones after Neji.

"Naruto, you can't win like that! You'll run out of chakra!" Sakura shouts to him.

"He can make all those clones…wow…think of all the usefulness he can manage." Mei says quietly, blushing a little as she thinks of the things many Narutos can accomplish.

Neji ducks and maneuvers his way around the hundred clones, not even wasting time striking them. 'The more they fight me, the easier I can see the real one…He is…over…'

The Hyuga dashes past the Naruto clones, until he reaches the only clone out of range. He then removes his hand from Naruto, watching him expel blood from his mouth. "The real one hid in the shadows to prevent himself from being hit in their tenketsu."

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata cries, cringing in pain from seeing him hurt.

'Is it over already?' Thinks the Hokage, believing Naruto would put up a better fight.

'Naruto…wait…' The Mizukage thinks differently, seeing something odd with Naruto.

"This is destiny. I told you it was useless." Neji tells the defeated Naruto. He looks up at the Hyuga with a fang smile on his face.

"And like…I said…where do you get off telling…people what they can't do…" That Naruto then explodes into smoke, surprising Neji and everyone watching.

"A fake!?" Neji then looks to his right to see Naruto coming at him with a Kaminari Punch. On his left is a Naruto charging with a Lariat attack. Both are at a speed where he wouldn't be able to avoid.

"Alright! Go Naruto!" Sakura and Kiba cheer.

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata squeals in happiness, glad to know he's all right.

'He purposely had one clone stand out to draw me in?!' – Neji

"This is the power a failure can produce!" Naruto one and two strike Neji with all they've got, finally hitting their target.

"Kaiten!" But when they make contact chakra releases off of Neji's pores, just as he shifts his left leg behind him. The chakra swirls around Neji, taking the form of a sphere with him in the middle. This repels the two blonds and send them back. The one on the left dissolves into smoke while the other rolls over the ground in pain.

Naruto looks up at Neji, and then at the ground around him. He could see the dirt has been moved accordingly with his ability. "Dammit…he had an ace?!"

"That was the Kaiten…the ultimate absolute defense of the Hyuga clan…" Hinata says quietly, watching the battle with interest.

"This battle is over. There's nothing you can do." Neji says to Naruto, watching him stand back up.

"Why? Because you say so?" Naruto questions him.

"No…because you're in the zone of my Hakke." Naruto lifts his eyebrows in confusion, not realizing what he meant by it. Neji lowers himself in a different stance, one his father recognizes clearly. "Hakke Rokujuuyon Shou! (Eight Trigrams 64 Palms)"

"Hakke two hands!" Neji strikes Naruto's body twice, at a speed he couldn't detect.

"Hakke four hands!" He lands four strikes on the blond's body, causing him to feel a little woozy.

"Hakke eight hands!" Neji pummels Naruto again, this time making 8 attacks.

"Hakke sixteen hands!" He continues with 16 strikes, making 32 in total.

"Hakke thirty two hands!" More strikes his Naruto, inflicting 64.

"Hakke sixty four hands!" Neji finishes Naruto off with 64 hits, sending the young Uzumaki to the ground.

Hinata, Sakura and Mei cringe in pain as they watched him receive those hits. The Mizukage would have jumped in to save him, but that would cancel the match, and mess with his pride. Samui grips the railing she was leaning over in anger.

"That's it…he can't fight back anymore…" Haku says, knowing full well the power such a technique has over pressure points.

Naruto collapses on his back, coughing up an excessive amount of blood. Neji looks down at him, saying, "I have hit 64 Tenketsu points on your body. You have no chakra to use, and you can no longer stand."

Naruto lifts his right hand up, and uses it to flip himself over. He then uses the knuckles on his fists to try and pull himself back up. Neji smirks confidently at him, saying, "It hurts, doesn't it? Isn't it painful to have reality hit you in the face and force you down on your knees? Having your dreams come true through hard work, is nothing more than an illusion."

Despite his words, Naruto manages to slowly pick himself back up. Neji's eyes widen as he watches him stand. With a fanged smile, Naruto tells him, "I told you, you girly dude, I'm rather stubborn."

Everyone watches the fight with interest, wondering how the boy could get up after that. The jinchuuriki then goes on to snapping his fingers, hoping to get an electric current through his body. But he couldn't even get a spark.

"…Give up this fight. Continuing won't do anything, and I have no grudge against you-"

"I fucking do!!" Naruto growls back. "You…a person as strong as you…even when you were the better fighter, you went and mentally attacked my good friend Hinata like that!!"

"That is none of your business, boy." Neji says to him, a small hint of anger in his tone.

"Insulting her, claiming she's a loser…I may not understand your family's branch problems, nor do I understand why you hate them so much, but there is no way I can ever look away from a jerkass calling other people failures!!" Naruto yells at him.

Taken to the point of rage by Naruto's words, Neji then explains to Naruto the source of his anger; his father Hizashi Hyuga and Hinata's father Hiashi Hyuga, twins, were born into the family. But since Neji's father came out after Hinata's, Hizashi was branded as a Branch member, and gains the curse talisman on his forehead; the same one Neji has on his forehead. Some time after Hinata and Neji were born, a shinobi leader from cloud who had just signed an alliance with them kidnapped the three-year-old heiress.

That person was killed, but since Konoha broke the treaty with Kumo, things kind of got a little hectic. In the end, Leaf had to make a deal with Kumo, by promising the body of the Hyuga who killed the shinobi leader, to prevent war: Hiashi Hyuga. But the Main Branch replaced him instead with Hizashi Hyuga's corpse, and further fueled the basis for Neji's rage.

"And that is why destiny is absolute. Their destiny was decided for them the moment they were born…just like this match was decided the moment you became my opponent." Neji finishes, placing his forehead protector on his forehead.

Naruto pauses for a while before frowning. "Is that your reason? I thought you had a better excuse."

"What?!" Neji says to him in anger.

"To lose a father is indeed a sad thing, and because I had nothing to begin with, I have never known how losing someone you care about feels…but to take your anger out on Hinata, who had nothing to do with that transaction, only makes you a coward who's afraid of facing his problems!" Naruto's speech only serves to piss Neji off even more.

"Worthless." Neji then dashes towards Naruto and slams a Jyuuken strike to his stomach. Naruto skids and rolls across the dirt floor. "We're done here."

Naruto draws the Twilight Star and transforms it into Gilgamesh, using its shape to halt his sliding. He then looks up at Neji with a smirk of confidence on his face. "I'll never back down. Never to a coward like you!"

"How can an ignorant bastard like you lecture me? Everyone is born into a destiny they can never oppose!" Neji replies, his anger getting the better of him. "What does an orphan like you know?! You can never understand being cursed with something you had no control over!!"

At those words Naruto grows silent, still breathing hard from the pain he's gone through just now. His mind then goes back to a time in his past, before meeting Manabu and learning of his heritage and family, back when no one in the world cared about him because of the fox sealed inside his body. Some of the older civilians and ninjas of Konoha cringe when they hear him say those words.

A smile then rises up on the blond's face, and it brings him to say, "I guess…we're more alike than I thought…"

"What?" – Neji

"And besides, Hinata is just like you as well! She's been born into a branch and is pressured into becoming the heiress, but no one acknowledges or cares about her! She's been trying her best to become a better person. That's what she told me she's been thinking while coughing blood because of you!" Naruto shouts back, bringing Hinata's ears to attention. "Not only are you a coward, but you're a hypocrite too! A Branch member like you is supposed to protect the main members, but instead you try to kill them! You're the only one here trying to oppose destiny!!"

Neji pauses for a minute to think over what he said. As much as he wanted to disagree, Naruto is right; he only harmed Hinata so much to try and escape his destiny. But he couldn't let his words get to him. "What can you do anyway? Your 64 opening points have been closed, and your chakra has been sealed. Your sword may still work, but I've seen through all its tricks."

'I have to beat him…but, I can't summon any electricity, let alone chakra. Even with my swordsmanship, I can't seem to catch up with him even with the forms I possess…how can I bring out chakra…' Naruto tries to find a way to get past his current situation, but cannot seem to find any hope here. But then the image of the fox pops back up in his mind, and he smiles confidently. 'Yeah. I still have my real ace in the hole.'

"Proctor, I'm about to go at him with the intent to kill. If you want to stop me, then go right ahead." Neji says to Genma. He sighs and rolls his eyes, knowing that's exactly what he will do.

Naruto grabs hold of his jumpsuit jacket zipper and pulls it down, tossing it to the ground. He then removes his sword and its scabbard from his waist, dropping it to the ground. Naruto then holds his hands out to the side, clenching them tightly into fists. 'Hey fox! I need some of that rent!'

"Can I ask you one last thing? Why do you try so hard?" Neji asks Naruto, reactivating his Byakugan.

Naruto looks up at Neji, and then closes his eyes. His mind traces to his former mentor Manabu, as he says, "Because there's nothing in this world that isn't needed, even a loser like me."

His right hand sparks with electricity. It was a tiny jolt at first, but it happens. Soon his left hand gains the same power, and starts to spread to the rest of his body. Naruto's body slowly heals from the wounds he gained earlier, and soon his body starts to spark with electricity. Neji looks deeper into his chakra system, and sees a path of chakra originating from a spiral on his stomach.

'This chakra…it's opening up the tenketsu!' Neji looks closer at Naruto's energy, and notices it's the chakra is turning red. Soon the chakra takes form, resembling a demon fox head. This scares the Hyuga. 'What is he?!'

'This energy…' Hiashi seems to recognize the energy coming from him.

'Is he using that power?' Mei wonders as she watches her fiancé.

'I know this scent.' – Kazekage

"His chakra points were pressed though!" Sakura reasons, confused as to how he's doing it.

Gaara seems to be the most silent as he watches the fight, remembering the feeling of the chakra coming from Naruto. Killer Bee notices this as well, but remains quiet.

'This is definitely the Kyubi's chakra…when did he learn how…' – Hokage

The electricity grows even larger than normally, and slowly turns red in color. Naruto brings his arms closer as he feels the power flowing through him and raises his head up to the sky. He then makes a fighting stance as he looks at Neji, his eyes showing even a lightning appearance. "NIIIIREEEEAAAAAHHH!!"

Kenshin: In the next chapter, the next few fights go on. Then the invasion. Oh yeah, and if you were wondering, that power up with the Kyubi's chakra is just like when Static charges up or gets serious, before getting a costume chakra. It's the scene where Hotstreak burns the disk Static stole from Alva to prove he was behind the big bang gas.

* * *

Yusei: Hey, uh, I was just wondering, will we be taking part in this?

Kenshin: Hell no! Maybe you, but not me. If Manabu's in this story then I'm more than likely dead.

Manabu: And now, more on the Twilight Star's ten forms. As you may know, Kenshin has a special power called Rainbow. He uses it to copy other people's magic and transform himself to match it. He created the Twilight Star by having his friend forge a sword, adding features and a special design to it, and injecting one of the forms he has copied into it. He then has this process repeated, reforging the sword and injecting magic into each, until he reached the ninth sword.

3rd Sword: The Gravity Sword Kuro Getsuga

Weapon: Odachi Katana

Description: A 64 inch black katana with an eleven inch hilt colored black and red with a half broken chain hanging from the end.

Abilities: The sword enshrouds the user with an invisible black fume. This lightens the force of gravity on him, making it as if he is on the moon. The sword can gather the dark fumes around its edges and release it in a black shockwave of condensed gravity.

Weakness: The erasing gravity effect also works underwater, but with it active the user can't swim if submerged. It also works too well in making the user light, so it takes a bit of training to get use to it. The dark shockwave can only work at night, or atleast in places where the sun cannot reach them.

4th Sword: The Solar Sword Shining Angelus

Weapon: Lightsaber

Description: A black, metal contraption of technological means made to be the hilt. The blade is a light green blade of pure light.

Abilities: The sword gathers light from the sun, and takes form into a blade of pure light energy. Being incredibly hot it can cut through any object that isn't protected by chakra. It also has the ability to light any dark place.

Weakness: This weapon can only be powered by solar energy, so accessing it at night is a challenging thing to do. The less light it is in contact with the weaker it is.


	10. Demon Slayer Part 2

_**Naruto and the Water Princess**_

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Static Shock, Fairy Tail, or Rave.

Manabu: Welcome to another chapter of Naruto and the Water Princess.

Kenshin: Before we start the omake, which leads to the story, we have harem updates: Naruto will still be with Mei, Sakura, Hinata and Samui. Sasuke has Tenten and an OC. Haku will have Karui and...okay, we're still working on that.

Manabu: What about Anko?

Yusei: She's too much for him.

Kenshin: Shizune?

Yusei: No one wants a Christmas cake.

Manabu: What's that?

Kenshin: It's a Japanese term for women. You see, some countries like to celebrate Christmas with cakes. But no matter how delicious it looks, you never eat it after the Twenty Fifth. In the same regard, no matter how beautiful a woman is, no one marries one over the age of 25.

Manabu: Oh great...it's a pun too...But I don't see the problem with it. I would marry a woman over twenty five. Asuma and dad did.

Kenshin: Nobody likes a cake eater. It's all about pie!

Manabu: *face palms himself* Father...start the omake...

Omake –

"Soon, my plans will be complete." Madara Uchiha says as he looks up into the sky. Beside him on a table is an hourglass. He grabs it and holds it up, the sand reaching the end finally. "And finally, I shall become a god!"

The dreadful Uchiha then makes a maniacally laugh and throws the hourglass to the ground. The glass shoots up at him, but one sticks in his eye, causing him to cease his laguther. "AH! AH! MY EYE!!"

Zetsu walks up to him and asks, "Are you okay?"

"No! No! You should go call a hospital!" He says to him, holding his eye open with his right hand while his left points out the door.

"Okay, open your eyelids and try to tear it out." The two faced ninja tells his boss.

"That only works for sand!" – Madara

"Try to use another piece of glass to take it out." – Zetsu

"Are you fucking insane?!" Madara replies, and not much can blame him. I mean, come on; use a piece of glass to remove another one in a person's eye?

Zetsu sighs and walks off, saying, "I'll go get some needle nose plyers."

* * *

_**Chapter 10: Gaara's Demon Toxin**_

Naruto dashes at Neji at top speed, reaching him within two seconds. Neji prepares a Kaiten for contact, but instead of touching him Naruto holds up the Twilight Star. The sword splits into two, becoming the Chaos Sword Final Arcana. He stabs the black sword on one end and passes by Neji, placing the white sword behind him. 'What's he up to?'

"Neraaaaah!!" As he stabs the second sword into the ground, black electricity comes out from the black sword and connects to the white electricity from the other. This creates an electric barrier between them, keeping Neji inside.

'This is nothing…I can always knock away the swords and escape!' Neji says in his mind. He prepares to get free when Naruto jumps up in the air above him.

Naruto roars with a beastly voice, and gathers electricity to his mouth. He then fires his Rairyu no Hoko down directly below Neji. Neji performs the Kaiten, spinning around to blowback his attack. But instead of the attack reflecting, it completely consumes the area around him.

Both the rotation and the roar subside, and Neji is shown to be exhausted. The Twilight Star has also returned to normal. Naruto lands behind Neji and grabs his weapon, still expelling his red lightning throughout his body. 'There's no point in touching him…he's covered by electricity. Not only that but he's able to break through my Kaiten now…is that red energy really chakra?!'

"You're really confident in close combat, eh?" Naruto says to the Hyuga. He then holds his right fist up and prepares to punch his lights out. But before he could reach him Neji activates the Kaiten.

Naruto strikes the Kaiten with all his power. The attacks create a powerful explosion, blowing back both ninjas to the ground. The audience watches with interest and shock. Both impact sites are enveloped by smoke, so no one could tell who was where.

Hinata activates her Byakugan to take a look at who is where. But before she could look Neji and Naruto both stand up from their impact sites. Neji walks over to Naruto, breathing harder than normal. The young Uzumaki limps over to him on his left leg, his sword drawn and ready for battle. Both ninjas are battered and bruised, but Naruto seems worse.

"Sorry loser, but this is reality." Neji says to him. Naruto makes no comment as he continues limping. He then lifts his sword up to strike him, but before he could bring it down Neji grabs his right wrist, where his sword arm is. He then finishes him off by striking his heart with a Jyuuken attack, causing the blond to cough blood and drop his sword. "You cannot change destiny."

"You really don't learn, do you?" Naruto then explodes into smoke, shocking Neji.

"What? Where is he then!?" Neji looks around as he tries to find out where Naruto is.

Without warning, the Twilight Star explodes into smoke, accompanied by a shout of, "Rairyu no Naruto Lariat!!"

Neji's neck receives a lariat wrestling strike by an electric-charged arm, and is sent flying across the ground. He lands before Genma, who remains shocked at what he saw. Neji looks up at where he was hit, and sees Naruto standing there. He seems to be as bruised as Neji, but those words look to be healing slowly already.

'Even when injured, he simply believed in victory and thought ahead. The power to believe in yourself can change destiny.' Genma thinks, a smile present on his face as he watches the two.

Naruto steps before Neji, and sits down beside him. Neji then comments, "Why didn't I see that earlier…using the Kage Bunshin decoy to trick me into getting closer."

"Do you know how easy it is to fake a limp?" Naruto says to him. He then looks up to the sky, giving out a sigh as he gazes on upward. "I failed the ninja exam three times."

Neji looks up at Naruto with confusion. He couldn't tell what he was getting at by saying this. "For me, the only reason I couldn't do it was because I had to do the hardest technique in my entire arsenal…the Bunshin no Jutsu."

The Hyuga's eyes widen as he listens to Naruto, and then his hatred from earlier starts to go away. Naruto then lies down on his back, taking a while to rest. "So shut the hell up about who can't do what. That's something only a loser like me should do."

"Winner, Naruto Uzumaki!" Genma calls.

"Yay! Naruto/Naruto-kun won!" Sakura and Hinata shout at the same time. They start clapping for Naruto's victory. Soon everyone in the stands joins in and claps for Naruto.

Naruto looks up at all the people clapping for him, and soon he begins to smile. Finally, people are looking up to him, well down in this situation, and praising him. This is something he's always wanted from others in his entire life.

After putting his jacket back on, Naruto stands up and enjoys the many cheers he's getting. 'I wish Manabu could see me like this! He would be so proud!'

'Naruto…you really do make me wanna become better.' This thought goes through both minds of his female friends, Hinata and Sakura. They even blush as they watch him.

"That was such a great fight. I knew he could do it!" Mei says, placing her right hand on top of her heart.

"That was demon chakra there. He must be like us, so it's fair." Killer Bee says, having saw everything from within the stands. He then shakes his head, stating, "I guess Samui didn't lose for no reason. That kid's a bargain of the season."

"Allot of the older people from Konoha seem to be the most impressed." Samui says as she looks up at the stands from the booth. She then looks to her left and sees Gaara is rather quiet and tense. 'That chakra though seems a little familiar though.'

'So that chakra did come back…and he controlled it much better than last time.' Haku says in his mind.

"To be able to use the Kyubi's chakra in a stable state is indeed impressive for Naruto, and so soon too. What did Kakashi do to train him?" The Hokage says in a whispering tone.

"Is something wrong, Hokage-dono?" Mei asks Sarutobi.

"No, it's okay. I was just surprised, that's all." He replies back. He looks over to the side and sees the Kazekage is quiet.

Naruto walks back up to where his peers are, and is greeted with a headlock by Haku. "Good work out there, sparks!"

"Ow! Hey, let go!" Naruto says back, trying to break free from his playful grip. Haku adds to his humiliation by performing a noogie.

The ninjas from Suna look at Naruto with interest, especially Gaara. Naruto didn't see it, but everyone else could tell that Gaara has a great amount of interest in the boy, just like the Uchiha. That cannot be good.

'I knew that kid was weird when I saw those whiskers…he's just like Gaara…' Temari says in her mind with great fear. She knows how powerful people like Gaara are, and who knows if he was stronger than him. 'It's good though that he isn't as mental as him…'

"You did great in your match, Naruto. Good luck in the next round." Samui says to him, a smile present on her face.

"Thanks Samui." He says to her.

"Our next match will be Shino vs. Kankuro." Genma calls out.

Kankuro grits his teeth in anger. 'I guess I'll have to quit. I can't let the new weapon be shown.' "I forfeit."

Temari sighs as she takes hold of her fan, eying Naruto as she leaves. After opening it she floats down on her fan to the ground. "Let's go!"

"I really don't feel like doing this." Shikamaru says silently. Naruto pushes Haku into Shikamaru, knocking the shadow user off the leg, onto his back. Shikamaru looks up at Haku, who turns around at his blond friend and spots him snickering. 'You're going to pay for that, Naruto.'

"Hey! Get up! Are you ready or not?!" She says to the boy.

"This is troublesome." – Shikamaru

--

"Killer Bee, where are you going?" Karui asks her jonin leader. Her and Omoi are sitting in the stands watching the battle, and were there to see Naruto battle against Neji. Killer Bee is seen walking towards the steps.

"I'm going to go meet someone." Killer Bee says, walking away to meet with this person.

As he heads down the steps, he spots Naruto leaving his peers. He seems to be a little happy. "I can't wait to tell Mei about my victory!"

"Hey you!" Killer Bee calls out to the blond kid. Naruto looks back at him, and frowns. "Got a minute or two?"

"Me? What for?" Naruto asks him, turns to face the tall black guy.

"That was some chakra you pulled back there. It seems a little bit too familiar." Killer Bee says to him. Naruto tenses up when he hears him. "My friend says it smells like an old friend of his."

"Old friend? Are you…like me and Gaara?" asks the Kyubi Jinchuuriki.

"That's right little man! I'm livin' life, blamma! Where I come free, they call me Jinchuuriki-sama!" Killer Bee rhymes, once again confusing the blond ninja.

Naruto slowly tries to understand what he said, piecing each line together, and then finally he understands him. 'So where he lives he is a Jinchuuriki as well, but he probably forces respect out of them with force.'

"So, you're one of us…then, can you help me deal with Gaara?! I want to help him out!" Naruto says to the other Jinchuuriki.

"You'll be fine…that guy's not much trouble to you." He says to the blond.

"What? But how can I beat him?" Naruto asks the more experienced Jinchuuriki.

"If you're really the guy who defeated Samui, then you'll find the answer." Killer Bee says back.

"I forfeit." Shikamaru says out loud, holding his right hand up. Temari looks at him in confusion.

After the battle started, Temari pushed on a vicious assault with her Kamaitachi technique. Shikamaru was able to outsmart and dodge her clever movements, using his Kagemane technique to keep her on the run. She was about to try and get him to stop, but he got her by use of the sun's movement, and a kunai kept afloat in the air with his shirt.

It's kind of a surprise to see that he's giving up, and when he won too. Shikamaru then continues with, "It doesn't matter if I defeat you. I won't have enough chakra to continue in the next few matches. It's such a pain in the ass…"

"What a whiner…winner, Temari!" Genma announces to all. With that Shikamaru releases the technique off of her, and leaves to the audience quarters.

As he reaches the steps, Naruto comes down and approaches the guy. "What the hell was that about?! You just quit out of nowhere?!"

"It's like I said! It couldn't be helped." Shikamaru replies to Naruto, scratching the back of his head. "Besides, shouldn't you be more worried about the next match?"

"Next match?" Naruto then realizes that the next match features Sasuke and Gaara. "Oh yeah! Where is that idiot?!"

"What idiot?" A person asks, coming up from behind Naruto without his realizing it.

Temari climbs up to where her peers are, and faces her two siblings. She then whispers to Kankuro, "It's almost time. Is he going to show up?"

"What are you complaining about? Of course he'll be here." Gaara says to her, gaining their attention.

"My friend Sasuke. He's supposed to be here to take part in his match, and he's-" Naruto then pauses to pay more attention to the voice. He soon recognizes the voice, and turns around to who talked to him. Shikamaru also sees who the guy is, and they both say in unison, "Sasuke!"

Outside of the stadium, two people are shown to be walking up to the entryway. The guards could see they are Gai and Lee, who is still damaged by his fight with Gaara. One of them says, "Ah. We were expecting you two. The matches have already reached the fourth match."

"The fourth? Can you tell me what happened in the first battle?" Lee asks them, wondering how Naruto's battle with Neji played out.

"Oh that? It was rather interesting…" The second one says, looking away with a small grin. "It seems the Hyuga lost. Who knew?"

At that, Lee and Gai are shocked to hear that. A person like Naruto has defeated a genius like Neji, leaving hope for Lee afterall.

"What's with you guys?" Sasuke asks them.

"YOU'RE LATE, YOU DUMBASS!! GET IN THERE NOW!!" The blond yells at him. Naruto then grabs Sasuke by the collar and tosses him into the field.

'That was kind of lame..' – Shikamaru

Sasuke slides into the battlefield, picking himself up quickly after pausing for a while. Genma then looks down at the genin, who stands up to his feet. "Name?"

"Sasuke Uchiha." The Uchiha responds. After picking himself back up he brushes the dirt off his clothes and looks around for his opponent, ignoring the cheers everyone gave out.

"That's good." Genma then looks away, awaiting Gaara to come down.

"See? He came." Gaara states. He then walks down the steps to meet up with the Uchiha.

The Kazekage smiles under his mask as he sees the Uchiha has come. 'Excellent. He came after all.'

"Excuse me, I have a question." Sasuke asks the proctor. Genma looks back at Sasuke. "What happened in the Uzumaki and Hyuga fight? I can only assume he won."

"Yup. The Hyuga lost." He replies, bringing a smirk to Sasuke's face.

"Good." – Sasuke

Gaara walks down the steps to meet up with Sasuke, when he is approached by two ninjas. He doesn't make any movements or words to them. One of them then says, "These low level tournaments are great for betting, especially the Chunin Exams, and many of the ministers are here for that."

"That's why, we're here to make sure you forfeit the match." The other one says.

Gaara glares at the ninjas before him, only his eyes seem a little weird. They now sport a yellow square iris with blue dots. Within a split second sand comes out from his gourd and splatters the two into the walls, killing them instantly. As he walks away his sand retreats to his gourd, the thick scent of blood on it.

Elsewhere, Killer Bee is walking up the steps, and spots Gaara coming towards him. Without saying anything to him, Killer Bee pauses to allow him passage. He also spots the bloody hallway in front of him. 'What a dangerous kid that guy is. That Uchiha may be in for trouble.'

Kakashi appears in the stands surrounded by a flurry of leaves, and Sakura, Ino and Chouji look up to see him. "Yo."

"No yo! Where were you all this time?! I haven't seen or heard from you or Naruto ever since this month began!" Sakura says to the silver haired jonin. The ninja looks down at his female student, and could see the sadness in her eyes. "I wanted your help. You, Sasuke and Naruto weren't around to help me, and in then end, I had to forfeit…"

"I'm sorry, Sakura. He really needed the training. After all, you were there when Gaara almost killed Lee." Kakashi explains to her. He was glad Naruto got through his battle with Neji and won, silently thanking Ebisu for teaching him. "Things won't end in the same way next time."

Gaara makes it down to the stage, and walks before Genma and Sasuke. He seems to have a crazed look in his eyes. The proctor then says, "Let the match between Sasuke Uchiha and Gaara begin."

Wasting no time, sand pops out from Gaara's gourd, and Sasuke flinches into jumping back. The Uchiha then figures, 'So this is the sand Kakashi mentioned!'

"Don't be so angry, mother." Gaara mutters silently.

'Is he talking to himself?' Apparently it was silent enough, for Sasuke could clearly hear him.

"I gave you disgusting blood earlier, but now I'll make it up to you…his will be delicious." He finishes, smiling while looking at Sasuke.

Sasuke begins the battle by throwing shuriken at him. The sand grasps the items. Then the sand starts to take the shape of Gaara, similar to a clone. As the Uchiha charges, a burst of sand comes out from the clone's belly to him. He leaps over it and throws two more shuriken at him. The clone counters by spitting its own shuriken back at him.

"Time for that sword to appear." Sasuke then holds his left hand out, as the dark sword takes form from the darkness seeping from his pores.

'He's still using that sword…' Naruto thinks as he watches the battle. He could feel his heart beating faster as he looks at the sword.

'Good Sasuke-kun, good.' – Kazekage

"Let's try Explosion!" Sasuke switches the sword to its explosive form, and swings down at the sand clone. But instead of blowing it up, it captures the weapon and morphs around it. Before the sand could completely encase the weapon, he punches the clone in its face.

He then leaps through the sand towards Gaara and throws a punch with his right fist. A wall of sand rises to block him. But Sasuke smirks, and doesn't touch the sand. Instead his sword transforms into its sonic state, and he disappears in a flash. He then comes up behind Gaara, the sword now in its explosive state.

"Bakuhatsu no Kenjutsu: Baku no Hadou! (Explosive Sword Technique: Wave of Explosion)" Sasuke then slams the sword into Gaara's face, creating an explosion on impact. Gaara falls a few feet away from Sasuke, sand reforming on a bruised cheek. "So that's the sand armor…come, I'll tear that apart too."

Gaara sends a flurry of sand to an approaching Sasuke, who dodges at the last second and comes up behind him. He then slams his sword down at him, cutting into the sand armor. The audience cheers in awe of the superior Uchiha.

"Try Blue Crimson!" Sasuke holds up his sword, and has it split into twin forms. With this he charges at Gaara, easily evading the sand armor and coming close to him. He then swings at the sand ninja, flames and ice being released from both cuts. The fire doesn't do any damage to the sand armor, but the ice freezes some of it, and takes it off. "That sand armor can't hold up against a sword of ice."

Sasuke then kicks Gaara in the chin, knocking him up into the air. The sand ninja rolls across the ground, surrounded by his sand. Kankuro, still watching the fight, seems to be a little scared. 'Gaara can't keep up that sand armor, since not only it takes too much chakra it won't hold against the power of water.'

Sasuke charges at Gaara, who forms all his sand to morph into an orb of sand. Even as Sasuke approaches him, he activates his sword and swings down at it. This creates an explosion, but when the smoke clears the shell of sand is shown to be completely fine. Some of the sand has also shot out at him in the form of spears, and cut a part of his right cheek and arm. "Damn…"

'No! He can't be thinking of using that!' – Kankuro

"Dark Twin Dragon Sword!" Sasuke backs away from the shell and spreads his sword into two blades. He then swings the left sword, creating a wave of ice to freeze that single side of the armor. Before he calls his sword away, Sasuke notices an eye of sand floating above the sand dome. 'It's good he's just standing there. My secret move needs some time as well.'

"What's he doing, using that jutsu here and now?!" Kankuro curses.

"Gaara's forgotten all about the plan then. Should we run?" Temari asks her brother.

'Plan?' – Haku and Shino

Sasuke flips back onto the concrete wall, sticking to it with his feet of course, and performs a couple of hand seals. He then holds his left hand down, grabbing its wrist with his right hand. Throughout the arena, all could hear the sound of a thousand birds chirping.

This is coming from Sasuke's technique; lightning collected to the palm of his left hand. Sakura gasps when she sees the attack, and looks to her mentor and asks, "Is that your technique?"

"The reason I trained Sasuke personally for this match is because he's more like me than you or Naruto." Kakashi says to her. "Heightened flesh…the reason I trained him in kenjutsu and taijutsu, as well as raising his speed."

"Chidori!" Sasuke yells as he slams at the sphere of sand on its ice side. This attack cleanly pierces through and punctures inside.

"No way!" Temari exclaims, seeing Gaara's absolute defense destroyed by Sasuke's attack.

"This guy is amazing." – Kankuro

"What a gaudy move." Haku states.

Suddenly, Sasuke grabs his arm in pain, and begins screaming, "What the hell!?" Sasuke pulls his arm out, the power of the Chidori still active. As it stops he could see a leech like appendage attached to his arm. Sasuke pulls his arm out, the wrappings around it gone as well. The appendage, now resembling a claw-arm, reaches out for him before slithering back in.

"Oh my god! Did he complete his transformation?!" Kankuro asks his sister in fear.

"I don't know! Oh god, I hope it doesn't come out again!" Temari adds, sweat coming down her face.

Sasuke looks into the sand through the hole he made with his eye power, and pales in fear when he sees the yellow and blue dotted eyes within. The sand dissolves off of Gaara, showing him in his normal state. His left shoulder is seen bleeding.

'What was that thing…those eyes that looked at me.' Sasuke's thoughts go onto what he saw earlier.

His eyes look to the side as they catch the sight of feathers pillowing down from the sky. Everyone in the stands starts to get affected by it. The ninjas who were wise to it activate a release to the genjutsu and remain unaffected. Actually, the only non-generic ninja below the rank of Chunin was Naruto, who is terrible at genjutsu.

"What is the meaning of this?" The Hokage asks, him and his colleges unaffected by the genjutsu since it didn't reach them. Before Sarutobi could stand, the two that came with the Kazekage slaughters his guards. The Kazekage, who holds a kunai to his throat, then puts him into a vice-grip.

"Long time no see, Sarutobi-sensei." The Hokage gasps when he realizes how familiar the voice sounds. He looks to the masked ninja and sees he is actually Orochimaru.

"My dear pupil…I would never have guessed you disguised yourself as the Kazekage. Where is the real Yondaime?" He questions the snake prince.

"Hokage-dono!" The Mizukage stands up and prepares to save him, knowing she is far superior to his flunkies. But suddenly she gets caught up in an explosion that destroys part of the stands where they were. Orochimaru takes the old ninja up to the top of the stadium, where his guards follow him.

The Mizukage leaps out from the rubble and smoke, chasing down the ninjas with all her speed. She is also holding her bleeding left arm in pain. Orochimaru looks at her and tells her, "Are you sure you should be following me? After all, who knows what could befall that little boy."

"Naruto…" Mei looks back down at the stadium, watching the sound and sand ninjas fighting against the leaf. No doubt Naruto would get caught in it. She slowly turns away from the fighting to pay attention to them. She then says, "He'll be fine. He has friends who can look after him."

"Is that so?" Orochimaru looks at her hands, which seem to be trembling. She really does want to protect him, but knows that she has to save the Hokage first. As per their alliance she has to assist the leaf if they ever need it.

"Naruto, please be safe." Mei says as she takes her hat off. After the hat comes off, the two guards before her dash after her.

She draws two kunai and dashes at them, cutting through the ninjas like they were paper. But to her surprise the four halves jump out around them in a rectangular formation. She then realizes that they're actually four ninjas instead. Before she could make any action, a blast of wind knocks Mei off the top.

"Do it." – Orochimaru

"Shishienjin!" The four sound ninjas say, encasing the two kage level ninjas inside a purple box-like barrier.

Mei lands on the side of the stadium walls, and spots a few sand ninjas charging at her. 'They must be the ones who attacked me.'

Down below, Temari and Kankuro stop before Gaara, who is holding his head in pain. Their mentor Baki comes to them as well, saying, "Hey! How could you try to transform in the middle of the plan?!"

"He's feeling the side effects. There's no way he can continue." Temari comments.

"Then what, we continue without Gaara?!" – Kankuro

Sasuke looks at the ninjas around him, confused as to what's going on. Baki then says, "Take Gaara and go, abort the mission."

"What about you?!" Temari asks their team leader. She and Kankuro lift Gaara over their shoulders and prepare to leave.

"I'll join the battle. Just go." As he says this, the three genin flee. Baki then faces Genma.

"Orochimaru is behind this, isn't he?" Genma asks Baki.

"Could be! Wanna find out?" Baki questions the ninja.

"What's going on here?!" Sasuke questions the two adults.

Genma looks back at Sasuke, and says, "The Chunin Exams have concluded for now. Go pursue Gaara and the others."

"What?" – Sasuke

"You're already at Chunin level. A leaf Shinobi like you should make yourself useful." Genma says to him. Him and Baki then disappear, taking off to fight somewhere else. Sasuke then takes off and goes after Gaara.

Back with Naruto and Shikamaru, Sakura finds them and wakes the blond up by releasing the genjutsu. The blond ninja picks himself up and looks around. He then asks, "What happened?"

"I think it's an invasion. The sound and sand ninjas are fighting us." Sakura says to him. Naruto stands up and brushes himself off, just as a sound ninja comes up behind him. "Naruto, look out!"

Before it could take him out, Samui comes up behind the sound ninja, and slaughters him with her odachi. She looks at the two ninjas and smiles. "Are you okay, Naruto?"

"Thanks Samui! What's going on?" Naruto says to her.

"It would seem Suna and Oto are at war with Konoha. What happened to you?" Samui goes to Naruto and brushes the dust off of him.

"Why are you helping Naruto?" Sakura asks her.

"Because I am betroth to him." She says. Sakura pales in shock from her words, and then looks back at Naruto and Samui in a jittery motion.

"WHAT?! BUT AREN'T YOU ENGAGED TO THAT OTHER PERSON!?!" – Sakura

"Look, I'll explain it later…can you release the genjutsu on Shikamaru?" Naruto asks Sakura at the end. The pink haired girl looks down at the ninja, who looks like he's trying to stay asleep.

A dog pops out from behind her and bites down on his leg, forcing him to wake up. "YOU WERE AWAKE THE WHOLE TIME!!"

"I don't want to get involved with this." He says, pulling the ninja dog off his leg.

"Look, we have our orders from Kakashi-sensei. We have to find Sasuke and take him to a safe location!" Sakura says to the two Konoha genin.

"Why? What's wrong with him?" Naruto asks his female teammate.

"I'll explain on the way." Sakura says, grabbing Naruto and heading towards the exit.

Samui watches as the two ninjas leave, a cold stare on her face. As Shikamaru leaves she sighs and rubs her shoulders. "I should go after them, but I have to go find those idiots."

--

Sarutobi breaks free from Orochimaru, and removes his Hokage garments. He now sports a black jumpsuit with gray shoulder pads and a Konoha forehead bandana over his head. Orochimaru removes the kage clothes he now wears; appearing in the outfit he wore while fighting Naruto and Sasuke. He says, "You really should have picked a successor, because you're going to die right here and now."

"Like hell you will." Sarutobi says to his former student.

The four sound ninja place barriers around them, to prevent anyone from attacking them from the inside. Mei sighs as she watches them go at it, moving past the melted ninjas around her. 'I guess breaking free won't be so easy. I can't break in without the barrier melting whatever touches it.'

Sarutobi and Orochimaru dash at one another, the Hokage preparing to take him out with a shuriken he tosses. He then performs a lot of hand signs. "Shuriken Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

"Edo Tensei no Jutsu!" Orochimaru performs plenty of complicated hand signs, and out from the ground pops a coffin, blocking the millions of shuriken the Hokage shot at him.

'No! Not that technique!' He fears. Orochimaru summons a second one, bringing Hiruzen to fear him more. Just as he was about to summon a third one, Hiruzen sends more shuriken at Orochimaru, stopping him from summoning it. 'Good, I stopped him from making the third appear…even so…'

--

Naruto, Sakura and Shikamaru dash through the forest in pursuit of Sasuke. As they run a group of sound ninjas chase after them from behind. Naruto says, "We're being followed."

"I got 'em. You guys just go ahead." Shikamaru says, stopping to go face them, not directly though.

Naruto looks back at Shikamaru, about to go help him, but Sakura pulls him forward. "He chose to do this. We have to go help Sasuke."

"But Shikamaru is still tired from his match!" Naruto states.

"He's a genius. A Chunin ranked ninja like him can take care of himself." Pakkun the dog says.

Elsewhere, Temari and Gaara head deeper into the forest, Kankuro being the only person missing. Temari looks back and sighs, saying, "I hope Kankuro's okay. I don't know if he's enough to stall that Uchiha."

"Temari put me down." Gaara says to his sister. She looks down and gasps.

"Gaara? You're awake." Temari says, stopping by a tree branch. She then watches as he grips his head in pain. 'That thing was stopped earlier from coming out…I don't know when it'll come back out…this is bad! I'm all alone out here with him!'

The sand ninja looks back, and quickly pushes Temari into another tree. He then stands up to face behind him, and Sasuke Uchiha can be seen standing on a branch. Sasuke then says, "I may not know what your motives are, but I will not have you doing whatever you want!"

Gaara grins as he looks at Sasuke, a dark and ominous aura leaking out from his body. Temari gets up and looks at the ninja that just appeared, blood leaking down her mouth. 'What's he doing here? Wasn't Kankuro suppose to stall him?'

"A bug hive is dealing with your friend." Sasuke says to them, and then points his right hand index finger at Gaara. "Now, show it to me. I want to see your true face."

As Gaara stares at Sasuke, cracks begin to appear on his face. "You are strong, you have companions, you have an ambition, and you are like me…" At this point Gaara is drooling, and his eyes are transforming slowly. "Once I kill you, I will destroy all of that…only then can I feel alive!!"

On Gaara's right side his body is slowly encased in sand and chakra, the arm forming into the claw from before. Sasuke pales once more, as he looks at the face once more, the boy transforming his face into that of a monster's. 'I should have stayed in bed today.'

"Guraaah!" Gaara leaps at Sasuke, his right claw preparing to reap through him.

"Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu!" Sasuke blows a giant ball of fire at the demon boy. As Gaara passes through it unharmed, he jumps out of the way. 'I figured fire wouldn't do anything to that sand of his.'

"What's wrong?? Sasuke Uchiha!! Are you afraid of me!!" Gaara growls at the boy. Sasuke, hiding behind a tree, grits his teeth in anger as he awaits his approach. He holds his left hand out, darkness seeping out from his pores. But it then recedes back into his body, the sword vanishing before it appeared. "Is your existence so pathetic that you can't face me?"

Gaara leaps at Sasuke, preparing to kill him. Sasuke comes out from behind the tree, his Sharingan active and the Chidori in use on his left hand. Sasuke then carves his attack through the sand demon, cutting clean through his body. Gaara lands on the ground in two pieces.

"Gaara!" Temari calls out. She wouldn't dare come close to him, should he be alive he could kill her easily.

Sasuke looks down at Gaara's body, and sees that sand is reforming around his body. The demon then stands back up and looks up at Sasuke. He smirks, saying, "There we go! Those are the eyes of the one I want to kill!!"

'How?! The Chidori damaged him last time! What's different now?' Sasuke states in his head. He remembers clearly that his attack cut into his body.

"Sabaku no Yaiba! (Desert Sword)" Sand shoots out from his body towards Sasuke. The Uchiha jumps out of the tree to evade him, evading the sand that cuts through the tree clean. Gaara then rides the sand up to the tree, and hops across them to hunt down Sasuke. As he does a tail forms behind him, and he uses it to spring himself towards Sasuke. "Sabaku no Yaiba!"

Gaara makes a second attempt at killing Sasuke, with his claw arm. He jumps out of the way to avoid his incoming death. Gaara then transforms his legs into sand, using it to levitate himself. The sand demon launches himself towards Sasuke, who forms a Chidori once again. 'I have to force a third attack. Fire won't work, so electricity will have to do.'

"Guraaaaah!" Gaara prepares to finish the Uchiha off. As Sasuke approaches the sand demon, his Chidori slowly fails. But as he gets closer, dark marks slowly creep up on his face and arm, and his electric power increases. He then cuts through Gaara, blowing him to pieces.

Sasuke crashes into the tree branch, the curse mark receding back into his body. Gaara comes together and dashes towards Sasuke, preparing to finish him off this time. A stream of condensed lightning comes down at Gaara, blasting him to bits of sand once more. He reforms on a giant leaf and looks up at him. Naruto hops down in front of Sasuke, with Sakura coming up to the Uchiha.

Naruto looks Gaara in the eyes, his teeth exposed with his grin. "Who the hell are you?"

Pakkun the dog comes up behind Naruto, climbing up the guy's shoulder. "Well, he does look a little different, but that's definitely Gaara."

"Gaara…so he really is one of us." Naruto whispers to himself.

"Mind you that I can't fight well." Pakkun says to them. Sakura reaches out and grabs the dog in anger, muttering about how useless it is.

Naruto holds his right fist up, electricity surging through the fingertips. Gaara grins as he looks at him. "You're that boy…"

"Everyone, get back!" Naruto says to his friends. Without warning, Gaara flies past him and goes after the injured Sasuke.

"Die, Sasuke Uchiha!" Gaara shrieks, lunging at the fallen ninja. Sakura stands up to face him, throwing a swift kick to his face. The kick knocks off Gaara's mouth, but he still slams her into the tree with his extending left arm.

Sakura coughs up blood from the impact, and slowly begins to lose consciousness. Naruto grabs Sasuke and takes him to another branch. "Sakura!"

'Even though he was in his demon state, she still fought against him.' Temari thinks as she watches Team 7.

"Let her go!" Naruto shouts at her, but he still has a look of fear in his eyes. Gaara turns to face him, and his mouth reforms on his face. 'He's completely made of sand. It won't matter if I cut him, cause he'll just reform it back.'

"What's wrong boy? Are you so afraid of me you are resorting to shouting?" Gaara barks back, grinning from ear to ear at him. His left claw detaches from Sakura, having the hand itself still grip her to the tree, and grows a new one. "You are fighting to save this girl…such an emotion is a foolish thing. It doesn't matter if one fights for themselves or others…as long as one loves only oneself, and fight for no one else, can someone become the strongest!!"

Naruto places Sasuke down onto the tree, and glares at Gaara. The fear hasn't left his eyes, but there is determination rising up to overcome it. "Let her go now!"

"Or else what?" – Gaara

"Or else I'll kick your ass!" Naruto threatens.

* * *

Kenshin: And that ends chapter 10. Next chapter Naruto fights Gaara with the help of Hydra and the 6th Sword, and Sakura confesses her feelings for him. Then, somebody's brother comes back to pay a visit.

Manabu: How many days are left?

Kenshin: For what?

Manabu: Heartgold and Soulsilver?

Kenshin: Let's see… 'Checks bulbapedia'. We've got two weeks.

Manabu: Then why are commercials pertaining to the game coming out already!? Are they trying to torture us!?


	11. Demon Slayer Part 3

Omake –

"I got it!" Minato says, reading the scroll he holds in front of him. On his bed is his wife Kushina, almost reading to give birth to her son Naruto.

"What is it?" She asks him.

Minato turns around and holds out a scroll, with the designs of the Shiki Fuujin. "I've finally finished the Jutsu. This can seal the fox away in our son's body."

"Minato, I don't know if it's right to burden our son with such a thing. After all, he'll be holding the strongest of the demons, so those guys will be after him." She states, a look of worry on her face.

"Where do you get off telling me what to give my son?" Minato asks the woman. She stares at him with a death-pan glare. The Hokage pales as he looks at her, knowing how dangerous she tends to be. "Oh right. Well, I guess I can try to reason with the beast again…honey…"

"You better! If all else fails, then you can use it…" Kushina says to him, giving off an evil stare. She then looks down at her stomach, rubbing it softly while humming in a soothing voice.

_**Chapter 11: Demon Slayer Part 3

* * *

**_

"Or else I'll kick your ass!" Naruto threatens. The claw around Sakura tightens, causing her to whimper more.

"Are you going to do it? Or will you continue to bluff until she dies?" At those words Naruto leaps at Gaara, and shoots a bolt of lightning at him. The lightning passes through his head, and his tail comes up and smacks him away. Naruto lands on a bushy tree branch, watching Gaara's body reform.

'I need to get him back to solid form…wait…that ice worked for Sasuke back then.' Naruto says in his mind as he thinks back to that match. Sasuke used his ice sword to freeze the sand shell. He holds his left thumb up and bites down on it, and then initiates the hand seals for the Summoning technique. 'I don't have any water-like jutsu, nor does the Twilight Star have a form that can summon water, to my knowledge anyway. This is my only shot!'

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Naruto activates the jutsu, and summons a cloud of smoke around him. Out from it pops a purple serpent like creature, with blue eyes and crystal scales.

Elsewhere…

"What is this jutsu!" Orochimaru questions his teacher. Currently, he and Sarutobi are face to face with one another, still in the middle of that prism.

The Hokage had used the Shiki Fujin twice; using Shadow Clones on two 'friends' he summoned earlier, and sealed them away in the stomach of the Shinigami. He had now used it on his former student Orochimaru, already pulling his arms out. "This is the Shiki Fujin; one of the jutsus made by the Yondaime Hokage and used to seal the Kyubi's soul inside of his son. At the cost of the user's life it rips the soul out of a living being and seals it within another soul.

"In a few seconds, both of us will be sleeping for eternity inside the stomach of the Shinigami." As Hiruzen finishes Orochimaru begins to sweat out of fear. He looks up and gasps in total terror. His eyes have spotted the Shinigami behind his sensei.

"NO! I WILL NOT BE DRAGGED TO THE DEPTHS OF HELL! DIE BY YOURSELF, YOU PEACE LOVING OLD FOOL!" Orochimaru, being paralyzed for the moment by the death seal working its magic, lifts his right hand index and middle finger. This telepathically lifts his sword, Kusanagi, up. He then forces it to come towards Sarutobi, to carve deep into him from behind.

"NO!" Mei leaps in the way and grabs the sword, trying her best to hold it back. While it continues and comes out from behind her, she does manage to keep the sword from reaching Sarutobi. She hacks up blood as she tries to keep it back, her bleeding and slightly burnt hands grasping the blade.

After dealing with the ninjas from before she manages to reach the barrier in time to witness him finish his fight. The barrier holding him in is fire based, so she used the power of her Yoton bloodline and melted through it; after all it is just fire based, and magma 'burns' even flames.

The Mizukage holds back the sword, but it continues to move inside of her. Sarutobi's monkey summon, Enma, grabs the hilt of the blade and holds it back, saving her from having the sword go completely through her. She sighs, thinking, 'The sword is inside of me, but it has missed my spine and vital organs. That's good…Naruto wouldn't forgive anyone if both of us died…'

"This is the end for you, my dear pupil…I'm sorry it had to come to this." Finally, the rest of Orochimaru's soul comes out from his body, and enters his body. This is a seal that resembles the one on Naruto's stomach. Orochimaru's body withers into dust, leaving his garbs behind. Sarutobi falls forward to the ground smiling, feeling the after effects of the jutsu he used. The Shinigami sucks in the rest of their souls and disappears.

The sword Kusanagi stops moving in Mei's body. This allows both her and Enma to pull the sword out. Enma smiles as he looks down at his master, and disappears in a puff of smoke. Mei falls to her knees, clutching the hole in her back and stomach. She rips her left sleeve off and wraps it around her wounds. 'I wish this hadn't happen…if only I was sooner…'

Back to Action…

The Hydra the young Uzumaki summoned snarls out loud as it appears before everyone. And it would have been intimidating, except that it is no larger than Naruto's arms. He stares down at the tiny creature, giving out a long blank glare. "…Really?"

"What the? You're just a kid. I'm not helping you without a snack!" It says to him.

"…WHY! WHY DID I GET A USELESS LITTLE SNAKE LIKE YOU!" Naruto screams, almost pulling out his hair in anger. Even after all that training, all he got was a stupid snake.

"What's your problem? I'm a hydra; Suineki!" It shouts at him.

"Look, I don't care what you're called. Can you do any technique?" Naruto asks it.

"You don't have much time until the sand kills her. If you're going to keep playing around, then you're friend dies." Gaara says to the ninja. His entire body transforms completely, matching the appearance of a tanuki, sort of. He then holds his arms together, and swings them at Naruto, shouting, "Suna Shuriken!"

Thousands of shurikens made out of sand fly at Naruto. The lightning user holds his hands out, and releases a hundred volts of electricity to blast them. He then falls to his knees, but receives a smack to the face by his tail. Naruto and Suineki fly into another tree. Gaara laughs as he looks at him. "What's wrong? You're not afraid of me, are you? Then fight me! Fight me with the power that defeated the Hyuga! I'll show you how worthless that power is as well!"

"Oh blow me!" Naruto leaps at Gaara, preparing to punch him with a fist full of electricity. Gaara sucks in air through his mouth and sand.

"Futon: Mugen Sajin Daitoppa! (Wind Release: Infinite Sand Blast Great Breakthrough!" Gaara fires a blast of sand-infected wind at Naruto, blowing him high up in the air. When he sees it he smiles confidently, and opens his mouth to receive it. "What?"

Naruto sucks in the wind-powered technique and swallows it in his mind. He then opens his mouth and blows a powerful hurricane at him. "Tenryu no Hoko!"

"What is this!" Gaara receives the blast and is blown to bits of sand.

Naruto lands on the side of a tree, holding Suineki in his right hand. "Thank goodness he used a wind technique. I needed a recharge."

"What was that?" Suineki asks Naruto, just as Gaara reforms together.

"I hold a bloodline that allows me to turn my chakra into my elemental affinity; I hold both wind and lightning, and so I can eat lightning and wind techniques thrown at me to recharge, and gain perfect immunity to it." He explains to him. Naruto watches as Gaara charges at him. "Can you use a water technique?"

"Uh, yeah! But how will that help?" Suineki asks Naruto.

"Just do it!" Naruto then holds his summon creature before Gaara. The hydra inhales the air, and spits out a small bubble.

"Ha! What's that going to do!" Gaara states as he continues charging.

The bubble comes into contact with Gaara, and explodes. This releases a large surge of water that completely covers the sand ninja. "Suiton: Awa Heki! (Bubble Burst)"

"No!" – Gaara

"Rairyu no," Naruto grabs Gaara by the right shoulder, and slams his right fist into his face. With it charged by electricity he shouts, "Kaminari Punch!"

Gaara is sent flying through the air, blood leaking out from his lips. Sakura looks at the fight from where she hanged, a little bit of blood coming down her lips. Naruto charges electricity to his feet and dashes at Gaara. He draws the Twilight Star, and transforms it into the Diamond Sword.

"Chromedread!" Diamond spikes shoot out from his blade to pierce into Gaara's limbs, pinning him into the tree. Naruto then lands on a branch close by him, and as he runs at him his speed increases by a great amount, thanks to the Gravity Sword. He hacks and slashes at the sand demon with all his might and speed, shouting, "Kuro Getsuga!"

Gaara coughs up a bit of blood as he receives the hundreds of cuts slicing his body apart. With the water keeping his sand form together he couldn't escape him. Sasuke and Temari gaze in awe at the power Naruto was unleashing on Gaara's body.

Naruto then follows up the combo by swinging downward. The result is his sword splitting into the Chaos Sword to leave a cross slash wound on his body. "Final Arcana!"

This slash also delivers an electrocution to the poor sand demon, which at this point is pretty severally damaged. But that didn't stop Naruto. He brings the sword together and forms the Alchemist Sword. "This is the power of relying on others, by befriending people! This is the power those who care for others can muster! Gilgamesh!"

Naruto swings down at Gaara, passing by the tree as he does. This strike creates a powerful explosion, one stronger than the normal ones. It even destroys the tree they were on. Naruto lands on the side of a tree, sheathing the Twilight Star away. He then forms a cross seal on his hands, and activates the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu. The one hundred ninjas all leap down at Gaara, preparing to finish him off.

'Even when I'm like this…even when I'm this powerful…how can he…' Gaara grumbles in rage as he awaits the ninjas and their arrival. "There's no way…"

"Hyaah!" The Narutos shout, preparing to take him down.

"There's no way…I'LL LOSE TO SOMEONE LIKE HIM!" Gaara growls out in anger. Suddenly his entire body explodes into billions of sand. The sand takes the form of Sabaku no Yaiba and carves through the clones. The real Naruto has enough sense to block with the Diamond Sword, and falls to the ground. He now looks up into the sky, and spots Gaara as an enlarged version of his demon form.

Gaara rises up from the inside of the creature's head, and looks down at Naruto. "You…have forced my hand Naruto Uzumaki…I can see you aren't just some lucky boy…you're a person worth killing!"

"That guy's kind of scary." Suineki says as he slithers into Naruto's open jacket.

"How dare you damage me this much? Force me to use this state? Force me to bleed more than I ever have!" – Gaara

"Shut up! You're the idiot who tried to kill my friends in the first place!" He shouts back at him.

"Yes, that's right…I did want to kill them…because I wanted to live…I wanted to become stronger…I wanted to prove my existence!" Gaara screams, the demon he's riding on turns towards him. He then makes a single hand sign. "I was going to kill you myself, but I'm sure he can do a better job of it! Tanuki Neiri no Jutsu! (Feigning Sleep Technique)"

Naruto watches as Gaara activates the technique, and immediately falls asleep. The monster's eyes dilate and move on their own, looking down at Naruto. It then speaks. "Hya ya ya ya ya ya ya ya! Hya ya ya ya ya! I'm finally out!"

"What the hell is he talking about?" Naruto questions. He says this while looking up at the sand demon.

"I think I know what that thing is." Suineki says to Naruto. "It's Ichibi no Shukaku, the one tailed demon."

"One tailed? What does that have to do with anything?" Naruto asks the tiny hydra.

"Quick! Try to summon a stronger creature now!" The hydra says to him.

"Sabaku Kyu! (Desert Coffin)" Sand gathers around Naruto, in an attempt to crush him completely. Naruto looks around him and gasps. He bites onto his left thumb and prepares to summon again. "Sabaku Soso! (Desert Funeral)"

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" The sand around Naruto is blown away with the power of his summoning. Out from the smoke he made appears a larger version of the hydra. This one is more of a giant version of Suineki, only with arms and legs. It has black scaly, slimy, skin and dark blue slit eyes. It looks up and sees Naruto on its head.

"Huh? Who are you?" The Hydra says. Suineki slithers down to the Hydra's head, causing it to gasp. "Suineki? What are you doing here?"

"Hi mom! This is Naruto. Him and I were being bullied by that monster over there!" Suineki says while pointing at Shukaku. His mother raises its head and stares at the sand demon in front of them.

"Ichibi eh? Then that must be the host on top." The Hydra says as it looks at Gaara's body. It then lifts its head to get a good look, and snarls. "Those possessed by the Ichibi become humans that cannot hold a single night of decent sleep. That explains those bags under his eyes."

"Oooh, there's someone for me to kill." – Shukaku

"The more they sleep, the more their personality leaks away, until nothing's left." Suineki adds.

"So, his lack of sleep is behind his unstable mind?" Naruto asks them.

"Ah. While awake the host can suppress the demon's powers. But when he's asleep, things won't go so well." The Hydra finishes. It looks up at Naruto and says, "Usually, if you want to summon me you'll have to prove yourself to me, like drinking sake cups or something, but we can mow through that later."

Shukaku holds its right hand up. It slams its stomach with its hand, and burps up a large blast of wind. "Futon: Renkuudan!"

"Wind eh? Then I'll just-" Before Naruto could take the blow, the Hydra ducks under and jumps high up into the air.

"Suiton: Mizu Kosen!" A powerful torrent of destructive water energy fires out from the Hydra's mouth towards Shukaku. It counters with three Renkuudan attacks. The first two stop the beam, but the third comes flying at them.

Naruto leaps in front of the wind attack, and devours it whole. This catches the Hydra woman by surprise. 'He ate the attack…is he one of the Uzumaki clan?'

The Hydra lowers her head to catch Naruto with its teeth. "Thanks for the help!"

"Naruto is it? I'm getting a little tired for this. I'm going to toss you over there to wake up that damn kid." The Hydra then swings Naruto out towards Shukaku.

"Futon: Renkuudan!" Shukaku fires off another one at Naruto. Naruto flies straight into the wind attack, and holds his sword up with both hands.

'Instead of eating it, I'll utilize this new sword's power.' Naruto says in his mind as he approaches the Renkuudan. His sword transforms into a white sword with blue stripes running down the edges. The sword cleanly cuts the attack. 'That's one charge.'

Shukaku shouts, "WHAT!"

Naruto lands on the tanuki, and quickly climbs up the side of it with his chakra sticky feet. He reaches Gaara and holds his sword up to him. Before he could reach the ninja, sand grabs hold of his feet and catches him. A stream of sand comes flying at Naruto, with the shouts of, "Sabaku no Yaiba!"

This attack slams into Naruto instead of cutting him up, though that could be contributed by the fact that he charged electricity around his entire body. The sand still bruises his body, cutting his forehead protector in half and tearing his jumpsuit off. His blue shirt rips up a bit, exposing his stomach where the seal should be.

"Naruto!" The Hydra and Suineki yell out, showing worry for Naruto.

"Hya ya ya ya ya! I finally killed him!" The Shukaku comments as he realizes the boy has stopped moving. The sand continues to rise up on his body.

Naruto slowly lifts his head up to face Gaara. Blood red chakra erupts from his body, and immediately converts into electricity. In addition a violent wind blows from his body as well. His eyes turn blood red with slit irises. He then cackles, "Yes! I'm out!"

"What? You're still alive?" Shukaku grumbles, the sand coming back at him. The sand is repelled away by his electricity and wind energy.

"Ah, Ichibi. Or should I call you Shukaku now?" 'Naruto' says in a dark and malevolent voice. He breaths in the wind and fires it out, shouting, "Tenryu no Hoko!"

The wind impacts Gaara's body, and tears his body up. The sand ninja looks at the blond ninja, effectively waking up. Shukaku roars, "No! I just got out!"

The eyes of the creature return to normal. Gaara growls in anger as he holds his hands together. "Futon: Renkuudan!"

'The host can do that as well?' 'Naruto' dashes at Gaara, cutting through his weapon with the Twilight Star's new form. "That's the second charge."

"I will not cease to exist!" Gaara fires another attack at Naruto, who cuts through it again. The sand tries its best to repel the courageous ninja.

"That's the third. It's time for the Phantom Sword to unleash its true form…Go take a nap!" 'Naruto' shouts as he aims his sword at him. A flash of light surrounds the weapon and changes its shape. The sword now resembles a silver bow with blue strings. The boy grabs the string and pulls back, and an arrow of pure light comes into form. 'The Phantom Sword Tenchi is a phantom blade that can only cut through things that do not have a physical form, like fire, lightning and chakra. With each swing it charges up, and with three charges it becomes a bow.

'The arrows can be used to seal away chakra by striking a physical object that hits it, but only three times before needing another recharge.' 'Naruto' releases the arrow and fires at Gaara, piercing into his chest. It doesn't harm the ninja, but seconds after impaling him; it destroys the demon body he's standing on.

Shukaku's body dissolves into sand. The two ninjas land on opposing leaves, still attached to different trees. The red energy around Naruto disappears, and his eyes return to normal. Naruto quickly grabs hold of his head in pain, falling down to his knees. His wounds from before start to affect him. 'What happened…I just sort of blanked out right there.'

"No! No! I will not fade to exist!" Gaara leaps after Naruto, his anger taking over his reason and logic.

Without a word, Naruto jumps at Gaara, his sword transforming into Gilgamesh. He makes a swing at Gaara's chest, and creates an explosion on impact. The two ninjas collapse on the ground, both of them in pain. That last explosion takes Gaara out of the fight, and due to having already been tired from the things he did earlier, Gilgamesh also affects him.

At that moment, the sand around Sakura lifts, and she falls to the tree branch. Sasuke jumps to her, in hopes to help her stay together. Sasuke looks at Pakkun, who has been hiding this whole time, and says, "Take care of Sakura."

"Well, it looks like they won't need us anymore; what an interesting person, that Uzumaki member Naruto. Let's go home." The Hydra says to her son. The two then disappear in a puff of smoke.

Naruto uses the sealed state of the Twilight Star to slowly walk towards Gaara. He continues to drag himself towards the guy, his right leg limping in pain. Gaara shouts out, "Don't! Don't come any closer!"

'To be seen as useless…to never be wanted…to have everyone around you want you gone…this is a pain no one should feel. There is nothing in this world that isn't needed.' These words continue to go through Naruto's mind as he goes closer to Gaara, the image of his mentor Manabu fresh in his head. His legs soon give out, and he falls to the ground face forward. Before he fell Gaara could see the seal present on his stomach, and his eyes widen as he looks at Naruto.

"The pain of being alone…it's too horrible to bear…those feelings you have…" Naruto begins, crawling towards Gaara with his right hand. "That is why…I can understand you…that is why I know where you're coming from…

"But I have people now who really care about me. They are truly important to me. I will not allow you to hurt them…even if I have to kill you." He continues, staring into the other Jinchuuriki with slit eyes.

"…Why? Why do you try so hard for others?" – Gaara

"Because, they saved me from becoming a symbol of loneliness. They gave my existence acknowledgment…they are important to me." He finishes.

Gaara continues to stare at Naruto in amazement. 'That's why…that's why he's so strong…'

Naruto finally collapses to the ground; his eyes going out like a light. Sasuke lands down beside him. "Naruto…" He listens in on the fox boy's heart, and including the beating he could hear snoring. The Uchiha then smirks knowing he's okay.

Just then, Kankuro and Temari pop down beside Gaara and lift him up over their shoulders. He says to them, "That's enough. I'm done."

The ninjas take Gaara and leave. This is the first time they've ever seen anyone beat down their little brother. As they leave, Naruto smiles a little to himself, and turns around to face upward. While escaping, Gaara turns to his brother and sister. Even though he's threatened to kill them numerous times, they've stayed beside him. Maybe this is what Naruto means.

"Temari, Kankuro, I'm sorry. For everything." Gaara apologizes. This takes them both by surprise.

"It's…it's nothing." – Temari/Kankuro

Three Days Later…

_A large serpentine dragon of Chinese origins flies through a sea of darkness, looking around its surroundings with light blue eyes. Naruto can be seen sitting on top of its head, before it roars and disappears. Naruto then begins to fall, landing on solid earth. He looks up to the sky to see the moon, but it seems weird that ten tails are waving from behind it. The center of the moon has a giant eye on it, similar to that same ten-tailed demon from the first dream. It gazes down at Naruto, before a flash of light emits from it._

_Nine of the tails fly off from the moon, and land around Naruto. Each tail swirls and takes the form of a giant monster. The first one is a tanuki with one tail, the same one Gaara used against him. The second is a cat made purely of purple fire, with two swinging tails behind it. The third is an aqua green turtle looking thing that has three tails. The fourth is a red monkey with four tails on its rear. The fifth demon is…something…it looks like a dolphin and it looks like a horse but it probably isn't either of them, although it does have five tails._

_The sixth monstrosity is a white slug standing up on two legs, with six tails slithering around. The seventh is a sort of beetle-like creature with seven tails behind it, although six of them look like wings. The eighth demon resembles an ushi oni, but it has eight octopus tentacles that it passes off as tails. The ninth, and final, demon is the fox that rests in his belly, its nine tails swishing carefully but wildly behind it. Each creature slowly reform, taking the look of human forms._

_He easily picks out the Ichibi, Hachibi and Kyubi forms as Gaara, Killer Bee and himself, but the others are a mystery to him. As the first eight leave, he is left alone with himself. That Naruto points out to the sky, and a leech-like creature with a Noh mask falls down from the sky. That creature takes human form as well._

Naruto opens his eyes, stretching his arms out to yawn. As he wakes up he realizes he's inside a hospital bed. He picks himself up, cracking his bones into place, as they haven't been used in a while. He looks to the side of his bed, and spots his tattered and ripped clothes, his katana, and what's left of his forehead protector.

"How long was I in here?" Naruto asks no one in particular. He picks himself up, and cracks his neck into place.

"Naruto!" Naruto looks to his left and notices Mei is by his bed in a seat. She reaches out to hug him, pushing his head into her breasts. "Oh Naruto! I'm so glad you're okay!"

"Mei! What happened? Who brought me here?" Naruto asks his first fiancé.

"Well, I didn't think I'd ever see you in here. I asked the doctors and they said you were brought here by Sasuke Uchiha. He then checked himself in and came out the next day." Mei explains to him. Naruto then pulls himself out and looks at her.

"Is everyone else alright? How did we do in the war?" Naruto asks her.

"Well, your village survived…but the Hokage gave his life to kill Orochimaru." Mei says to him. Naruto's eyes widen in shock at her words. His teeth grit in anger as he looks up at her.

"No! That's impossible! He can't be!" Naruto cries, tears forming in his eyes. The blond ninja then hugs Mei frantically, and begins to cry in her chest.

"It's okay…I know this is hard for you…" She whispers in his ears as he cries. He really cared about the old man, being the first person to care about him.

Later that day, Naruto leaves the hospital with Mei to visit the Hokage's grave. Naruto comes to it, and begins praying over his grave. Mei joins him in praying.

"How did the fight go?" Naruto asks her as they prayed.

"I couldn't see much, but before I got into the barrier they were trapped into, I saw the first and second Hokage fighting against the third alongside Orochimaru. He sealed them away using the Shiki Fujin. He was about to do the same to Orochimaru, but then his sword was about to come out from behind and kill him; so I has to take the blow for him so he could complete the jutsu." Mei tells him. Naruto then looks at her hands and fingers, noticing there are scratches present.

"Well, at least we won. Nothing like this will ever happen again." Naruto says, as he continues praying. "Mei, why do people sacrifice themselves for others?"

Mei looks down at Naruto, a sad look on her face. "When a person dies they lose everything; their past, their present life, their future…they can die in battle, or on missions, or for simple reasons…among those who are dead are some with dreams and goals, but everyone has something most important to them; important people.

"We trust each other, help each other. We come together in contact with these bonds from the day we were born. These bonds grow stronger as we age…this isn't a complex idea either…everyone has a bond they can never forget…no matter what…it will always be with them." Mei's words enter into Naruto's heart, and he finds himself a little sadder than before. But even with these words, he stays firm and positive.

"I think I understand…but, death must be painful and scary." Naruto replies.

"He may have died, but not for nothing. He left you and Konoha something important." She says to him. Naruto looks up at him, and she gives a smile while closing her eyes. "You'll understand."

"…Thanks…" – Naruto

After they prayed for the late Hiruzen Sarutobi, the two ninjas head for Ichiraku Ramen to eat. With the sad news of hearing about that Hokage dying, Naruto needs something to take his mind off of it. Of course, there are other things on Naruto's mind that doesn't seem to make sense; why did he blank out in the middle of the fight, why did he sleep for 3 days, and what happened to his friends?

When they get there they spot Jiraiya sitting in a seat, almost waiting for them. "Yo."

"Ah! It's you!" Naruto says as he points to him. He then rushes up to the Sennin and grabs his collar. "Where the hell did you go! You just push me off a cliff and disappear from me!"

"You…pushed him off a cliff?" Mei questions Jiraiya, looking at the Sennin with a smile. But you all know better than to think it's just an innocent smile.

"Uh…look, I was hoping to look for you. Konoha councils have asked a favor of me, and I need your help." The old man says to Naruto, completely evading what they said.

"And another-what? You need my help?" Naruto is about to get up on his ass about the incident, but when he mentions the favor and the help, all is forgiven.

"Yes. They need me to find the newest candidate for Hokage, and I want you to meet her." He says to him.

"What?" Naruto asks in a shouting voice. He seems mad about him choosing another person to become the Hokage, but it would only be natural, since Naruto doesn't have enough skills. "Oh fine, I guess I can go. But can I say bye to my friends first?"

"Eh, sure. Whatever. You got two hours." Jiraiya says to him.

"Two hours, huh? Gotta hurry!" Naruto then dashes away, running through the village as he searches for his friends. As he runs away, he passes by two people, bumping into them. "Oops, sorry."

After apologizing he walks past them and heads out. He didn't notice one of the figures looking at him, watching him go with his Sharingan eyes.

By The Time Naruto Woke Up…

On the walls of Konoha, two figures can be seen standing on top of it. They are wearing straw hats with paper streamers on the side. Their cloaks have high collars and are black with red clouds on them. The tall one has strange blue skin and his face closely resembled a shark. The shorter one has silent with black hair, but you couldn't see his face.

"Well, it seems that they escaped annihilation. But it seems that they've taken a lot of damage." The blue guy says. His cloak lifts a bit to show the forehead protector of Kiri, but it's scratched. This marks him as a missing ninja.

"Once a prosperous village…what a pity." The smaller one says as he looks at the village in front of him.

"Oh? This isn't like you…even you…I'm guessing you're feeling a bit nostalgic, right?" The blue one asks the dark haired ninja.

"No. Not at all." He says, lifting his head up. His straw hat lifts up as well, and reveals his forehead protector. It is a Konoha headband and is cut as well.

…

'I still don't know why he wants to take me…I want to learn the Chidori!' Naruto says in his mind. He looks around and spots his friend Haku talking with Orin and Kenta. "Hey, Haku! Orin! Kenta!"

"Naruto!" Haku calls out, waving to his friend. "Are you okay? We saw you in the hospital yesterday."

"Yeah, I'm fine. It's good that you guys are okay. Where are Sakura and Sasuke?" Naruto asks his friend. He seems indifferent to Kenta and Orin since he hardly knows them.

"Well, we haven't seen much of Sasuke after the incident. Sakura did visit you in the hospital though, along with that girl from Kumo, that purple haired Hyuga girl, and Mizukage-sama." Haku says, thinking over where his two friends are.

"Naruto…" A feminine voice speaks. Naruto turns around and sees Sakura walking up behind him.

"Sakura…" Naruto says as he notices the girl.

"Let's go." Haku says to his two teammates. The trio then leaves the two alone, giving them some space to talk things out.

"Naruto, thank you for saving me. Whenever I'm in trouble you've always been able to help me." Sakura says to him.

"It's okay Sakura. What are friends for?" Naruto says to her, smiling as she approaches him.

"That's just it…I don't see you as just a friend anymore…" She replies. Naruto blinks a bit as she approaches him. She then places her hands on his shoulder, continuing with, "I don't care about what happens anymore…I have to tell you…I love you, Naruto."

She then leans in to hug him tightly. Naruto blushes as he feels her body press up on him. He looks at her face and sees she is also blushing. He has a warm feeling in his heart from feeling the girl, and smiles while hugging back. "Thank you, Sakura. I accept your feelings."

"Yes, but you can't return them…that's because you have someone you love…" Sakura says, a little stream of tears coming down her face.

"That's not true…I have feelings for you as well." Sakura lifts her head up to look into his eyes. There she could see that he really means what he is saying, and more tears pour from her eyes. "We haven't had much time to talk since my training during the Chunin Exams, and then we had to go rescue Sasuke. Samui also made things weird between us. But now I can tell you that I have deep romantic feelings for you, and I want you to be with me as well."

"But…that's impossible! You have a fiancé right? Remember the Mizukage?" – Sakura

"Well, the thing is…I have a bloodline called Hadouryu. It allows me to turn my chakra into my elemental affinities for offensive and defensive abilities, consume external sources of the same element to replenish myself, and increase my sense of smell. And because it is the only bloodline of its kind still around, if I die then it's gone forever. That places me under the Clan Restoration Act." He says to the girl. Sakura reads over the words he said to her, and her eyes open wide.

"So, you can marry up to four girls and no one will question it?" She asks him. When he nods a smile rises up on her face. She then reaches out and hugs him again. 'I guess I can put up with any other girls he's around. If there's no problem with it I won't hesitate.'

Naruto then moves her head to face his, and kisses her lightly on the cheek. She blushes madly when he does. "I would like to spend more time with you, but I have to go. I'm on a mission!"

"Mission? Already! But we don't even have a new Hokage!" She says to him.

"Me and this old guy are going to find a former student of Jiji and bring her back to become the Hokage." He says to her.

"But, I just confessed to you. I want to spend more time with you." She confesses. She holds onto him harder, but he manages to slip free.

"Sorry, but I got to. Ero-sennin wants me and just me to accompany him." Naruto then walks off further into the forest, looking for his home. Sakura waves to him as he leaves.

Naruto reaches his house and enters the building. When the lightning, and apparently wind, user gets in he sees Samui sitting on his couch in a robe. He then smiles and says, "I'm sorry, I must be in the wrong house."

Naruto then closes the door, before kicking it open in anger. "NO, IT'S NOT! WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN MY HOUSE?"

"I was brought here by the Mizukage. Since she was shown to not be a threat, she let me in as a guest. And because I'm your slave I was registered in the defense system." Samui says to him. She then leans up and looks at him with a smile. Naruto sighs as he walks up the stairs; not knowing Samui is following him.

"What was Mei thinking…just because she's my next wife, slave, whatever, she shouldn't just…" Naruto then groans as he enters his room. He grabs his backpack and starts sealing items into one of two scrolls.

While he's sorting the stuff he didn't put in his scrolls into his bag, Samui silently creeps up on him. She holds out a kunai and aims it at his neck. As she's about to stab it down, her arm shakes and paralyzes. She then grits her teeth as she tries to cut him even harder, but the more she tries it the more she fails.

"I wonder if I should…" Naruto turns around and stops, seeing Samui holding a kunai to him. The blond lifts his eyebrow in confusion. "Oh thanks. I forgot to get this."

Samui looks at him with shock; she just tried to kill him, and he doesn't even care. Sure, he doesn't realize it, but even so he doesn't shout at her. Her upper eyelids lower in shame as she looks at him. Even as he takes the kunai her eyes look at him.

"Is something wrong?" He asks the blond woman.

Instead of answering him, she reaches out and hugs the ninja. Naruto blushes as he feels his head touch her breasts, this being the second time this has happened today. Samui looks deep him in the eyes, and says, "I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what?" – Naruto

"You're really a good person, are you… Maybe, I can get use to being with you." She says to him.

"Huh?" Before he knew it, she kisses him on the lips. Naruto's eyes widen as she continues to kiss him. He kisses the girl back, and she tightens her hold onto him. To him she could feel her heart rising and skipping a beat. To the boy he still prefers Mei's kisses.

Samui and Naruto part ways, and stare into each other's eyes. She then asks him, "Will you truly accept me?"

"Sure. Why not?" Naruto says, being the nice guy that he is. This finally confirms their relationship. "Say uh, where are your teammates?"

"They went back to Kumo with Killer Bee-sensei and I was transferred here because of the contract. It's because of my enslave-I mean, marriage to you, that I am to quit being a shinobi and live with you." She explains.

Later That Night…

"So, Ero-sennin, will I learn a new jutsu this time?" Naruto asks his new mentor.

"Ero? You do realize who I am right!" Jiraiya questions the ninja. The two ninjas are on the outskirts of Konoha, heading down the road to search for this woman.

"Of course I do. You were personally trained by Jiji and in league with Orochimaru. But that doesn't change the fact that you and him are a bunch of perverts." Naruto says as they walk along the dark road.

"Stupid brat…" – Jiraiya

"But why did you want me to come along? Why did you want to make me your student?" Naruto asks the old man. Jiraiya looks down at him.

"Let's just say…" The image of Mei and a melting atmosphere around her pops up in his mind. "You have a thunderous power inside."

"I do?" – Naruto

Elsewhere, not too far away, the two ninjas spot Naruto and Jiraiya down the room. The tall one says, "So that's him? Blond spiky hair, whiskers, and blue eyes?"

"Yup." The second one replies.

"It's a good thing we bumped into him, but he's being protected by one of the Densetsu no Sannin. Even one of the ANBU Uchiha and one of the Seven Shinobi Swordsman of the Mist can't stand up to him." He says, grinning his shark-like teeth in anger.

"Every strong man has a weakness." The smaller ninja says, his eyes becoming the Sharingan.

Earlier…

Sasuke opens the door to Kakashi's room, and Kurenai, Asuma and Gai all gathered in his room. He also spots his jonin sensei lying on his bed. "Kakashi…why is Kakashi-sensei sleeping? And why are Jonin here?"

"Uh, it's nothing to get riled up over…" Gai says to him. He can't tell him what really happened; the ninja duo from before attacked all four of them in search for someone, and one of them placed Kakashi under a genjutsu spell with the Mangekyo Sharingan. After Gai showed up, they ran away and they were forced to put Kakashi under medical attention.

Suddenly, a Shinobi rushes into the room, shouting, "Is it true Itachi is back! And he's after the fox kid Naruto?"

The ninja pauses in shock when he sees a younger ninja in front of him, even worse it being Sasuke. Not only did he expose Itachi's presence, who is also his brother and the one who destroyed his clan, he also spoiled a bit about who Naruto is, and that Itachi is after him.

Sasuke immediately rushes out the room, a blank look in his eyes. Kurenai calls out, "Sasuke, stop! Someone stop him!"

…

Naruto and Jiraiya make it into a nearby town, and come before a hotel. Since it's rather dark out they would stay in for the night instead of continuing. Naruto looks at the place, and comments, "What the hell is up with this weird town?"

"We're staying here for the night." Jiraiya says to him, ignoring his question once again. While looking at Naruto he notices a girl behind him. The blond turns around and sees her too. She looks real attractive, slutty, and has red eyes with black long hair. Her dress really shows off her curves. Jiraiya smiles that perverted grin while Naruto just stares with a blinking look. The old man hands Naruto the keys to the hotel. "Here, you go up and refine your chakra!"

"What? You're just making an excuse to go with…fine, whatever." Naruto immediately gives up and walks into the hotel. He doesn't really care if he hits it, knowing a shallow looking girl like her would reject him immediately.

Not long after they made it into town Sasuke reaches it quickly. He comes before the hotel they went into, and asks the counter guy, "Did you see a spiky blond haired kid with a stupid looking face and a guy with him here?"

"Spiky? Oh yeah! I think I know who they are." He says.

Back with Naruto he is busy practicing his katas. 'What a disgusting old man. I really hope I don't end up like him…'

Suddenly there is a knock on the door. Naruto sighs as he walks towards the door. Back with Sasuke he is knocking on a door. As soon as the door opens even a little, he pushes it open, shouting, "Naruto!"

Inside he sees a guy with blond spiky hair and an old man with white hair. "No…you're not him."

The door on Naruto's end knocks again. "Yeah, yeah! I'm coming," Naruto opens the door, and looks out at whose there. Instead of seeing the old man, he spots Itachi Uchiha. His eyes take a quick glance at the Sharingan he owns.

'This guy…he's a Sharingan user like Sasuke and Kakashi-sensei…' Naruto says in his thoughts.

"Can this brat really be the Kyubi?" Naruto looks behind him and sees the blue skinned ninja looking down at him. His body tenses up as he hears those words.

'How do these guys know about that?' – Naruto

"Naruto-kun, we want you to come with us." Itachi says to him. Naruto backs away from them slowly. How will he get out of this?


	12. Learning The Rasengan!

Omake-

"Sasuke-kun?" A soft, soothing voice speaks out. The Uchiha turns around, looking further into the rubble of the Uchiha estate.

"Mom?" Sasuke spots who spoke to him, and gasps when he sees that it's his mother. He quickly runs over the rubble in front of him, and hugs the woman with all his might. "Mom! You're alive!"

"Yes, I'm okay Sasuke. Itachi must have spared me…" The female Uchiha says to him. She then places her hand around his back, and smiles happily. The Uchiha releases him and looks down at the boy. "We can be together again…I also have a surprise."

"What?" He asks, and then notices Naruto walking up behind her. "What are you doing here, dobe!"

"I've started dating again after Fugaku died, and I met this cute boy out by this ramen store." Mikoto explains to him. Sasuke pales in shock, and fear, as he looks back at Naruto and his mother. She then holds onto Naruto, allowing him to grope her breasts and make her moan. "He's real good in bed, too."

"Take that, Sasuke! I'm going to be your new dad!" Naruto taunts to the horrified ninja. He then starts making out with his rival's mother, forcefully pulling her clothes off while still in front of him. Mikoto allows this to happen, and even digs her hands into his pants.

"NOOOOOOOOO!" – Sasuke

Sasuke opens his eyes quickly, realizing he is still in bed. He looks around and sighs, realizing it was all a dream, or a nightmare is more like it. It was so horrible it has given him a grossed look on his face. "Well that was just weird. I should probably cut down on the drugs."

* * *

**_Chapter 12: Learning The Rasengan  
_**

"Come out the room." Itachi says to Naruto. He could see the threatening look in his eyes, and he feels as if he should listen to him.

'This guy is nothing like Sasuke…' Naruto thinks as he leaves the room.

"Itachi, it's time to get started. Let's cut off his feet so he doesn't run away." The fish guy says as he draws his weapon hoisting on his back.

'These guys really do want to harm me!' Naruto grabs hold of the Twilight Star on his waist.

"Well, well, long time no see, Sasuke." Itachi says. Both adults turn around to see who is behind them, and Sasuke is shown standing behind them.

"Itachi Uchiha…" He mumbles, glaring at him with his Sharingan flaring.

"Good grief, what now? Another Sharingan user?" The fish guy says as he looks back.

"I…will kill you!" Sasuke immediately forms the Chidori, and charges at him in a blind rage.

"You seem to know this kid…who is he." Itachi reaches out and grabs Sasuke's left hand, where he is using his Chidori.

"He's my little brother." Itachi replies. He then snaps his wrist, before kicking him down the hall. Sasuke crashes into the wall.

'I've gotta do something!' Naruto jumps away from them and slides back, taking in a deep breath. Electricity condenses in his mouth and fires out as he shouts, "Rairyu no Hoko!"

"I've got it!" The swordsman of the duo takes his sword and swings it down, cutting cleanly through his lightning dragon roar. "Samehada can eat up any chakra."

"What?" Naruto draws his sword and holds it before him.

"Now, what should I do…cut off his arm, or both of his legs?" The swordsman questions as he walks slowly towards Naruto. He then swings his sword down at him, who counters with his own horizontal slash. Naruto's sword transforms into Gilgamesh, and creates an explosion upon impact.

'It's not made of metal, so this should work.' Naruto states in his head. When the smoke clears his opponent can be seen standing clear and fine. The explosion did nothing to him or his weapon. "What?"

"Ha! Would you like to try it again?" He asks him in a taunting voice.

"You two don't seem to know me very well." A voice says. Both missing ninjas look behind Naruto, and Jiraiya can be seen standing behind him, holding the girl he just left with over his shoulders.

"Where were you? That girl comes up and winks and you scamper after her!" Naruto complains to him.

"So, Jiraiya of the Legendary Three Ninjas…you like beautiful women, but who would have known such a simple method could stall you? Although, you did undo the genjutsu on her." The swordsman says to the old man.

"Who are these guys?" Naruto asks his current teacher.

"That's Kisame Hoshigaki, and that's Itachi Uchiha. Both of them are missing ninjas." Jiraiya says to him. He then sets the girl to the side. "For you to use the Sharingan to cast a genjutsu on the girl to distract can only mean you don't want me; you and your group are really after Naruto!"

"So that's how Kakashi knew…" Itachi states, turning his attention to him. "'Find and abduct the Yondaime's Legacy'…those were our orders from our leader of Akatsuki."

The air in the atmosphere becomes denser as they each exchange glances. Jiraiya then says, "That won't happen, because you will both die by my hands."

"No…" Sasuke mutters. Everyone turns his or her attention to the little guy. Sasuke then stands on his two feet. "I don't care about fish face…but he's mine!"

"You can't do anything to me as you are now." Itachi says to him. Sasuke looks down at his left arm, as his curse mark seal is unraveling. Itachi walks over to him, and punches him in the gut. He then holds him up by the neck.

Naruto grits his teeth in anger while looking at them. Sasuke looks up into his brother's eyes, and without warning he starts screaming. Naruto, being unable to take this anymore, runs after the two brothers while passing by Kisame. As he does he notices the room has changed. It now looks like they're inside a throat.

"Ninpou: Gama Guchi Shibari!" Jiraiya says. The throat-like room swallows Sasuke and takes him away. Both missing ninjas look at Jiraiya. "Too bad for you guys…you're stuck in my stomach."

"Kisame…" The shark guy turns to Itachi and joins him. Black flames come out from nowhere and burns a hole into the wall. The two ninjas escape through it. Jiraiya runs to them to try and chase them, but it was too late.

"Damn! They got away." Jiraiya then stomps on the ground of the throat, and forces it to disappear. Sasuke appears on the ground, almost dead.

Naruto goes to him and tries to help him up. As they go to help him, Gai pops up out of who knows where, and lands on Jiraiya.

"Whoops, sorry! I thought you were them!" Gai explains, rubbing the side of his head in shame.

"You did it on accident…well, can you take Sasuke to the hospital? He's suffered the doujutsu's power, and a broken rib." The old man says to him, pushing the taijutsu specialist off of him.

Gai takes Sasuke and lifts him over his shoulder. Naruto goes to his friend and asks, "Will Sasuke be okay?"

"He took a considerable amount of damage, mostly mentally. Kakashi has gone through the same pain." Gai says as he walks off with Sasuke.

"Kakashi-sensei as well?" – Naruto

"Jiraiya-sama, please find Tsunade-sama." Gai says to the stronger ninja. He then leaves them alone, heading for Konoha.

The next day Naruto and Jiraiya continue for the next town, looking for this Tsunade person who would be responsible for not only healing Sasuke and Kakashi, and Lee, but becoming the Fifth Hokage. After leaving the place Naruto looks up at Jiraiya, and sighs in depression. After all that training he went through, even with his bloodline, he was powerless against them.

"Ero-sennin, what were those guys? Why do they want me, or this thing here really?" Naruto asks him, placing his hand onto his stomach. "This is the monster that killed a great number of ninjas back home, and I know how scary it can be, but what reason could they want it for?

Jiraiya pauses for a moment before thinking of a way to explain it to him. "Well, it is true that Kyubi no Yoko is indeed a demonic monster of old that has lived for ages, a monster hell-bent on destruction. It is one of the disasters people of old feared about…only two people show no fear for the creature…

"As for why…that's something even I don't know. After all, it is inside of you. There may be a way to get it out, but that would end with terrible results." Jiraiya finishes, and then notices Naruto has lowered his head. "Either way, they'll come after you, all because of that thing inside of you. But that's why the Konoha council and me are around. We'll be there to-

"And that's just why I need to get stronger. Once we find this girl we can have her save Sasuke and then we can get down to serious training." Naruto says with a grin, his fangs exposed. The ninja then heads further down the path. The old ninja smiles as he follows him. Naruto then stops before looking at them. "This Tsunade girl is one of those Three Ninjas people refer to you and that snake guy right?"

"Yeah, what of it?" He asks him.

"Shouldn't she be really old? How can she be better than you?" Naruto asks him.

"Well, she just is. But yes, she is around my age." Jiraiya answers.

"Okay then." Naruto says, continuing down the road along with his teacher. "What's she like? Is she anything like Jiji?"

"Not really. She's rather annoying. She's a compulsive gambler, well known in plenty of countries, and has a temper as big as yours." Naruto pales as he thinks about this person. She must now really be that cool is she's anything like this. "She's famous for being called the Legendary Sucker."

"Sucker?" Naruto thinks about what he means about that. The only thing he could think of is that she sucks.

"She may be hard to find. As old as she is she may still be using that jutsu to look half her age." He adds as they walk off.

Naruto and Jiraiya finally reach the next town and take the time to break from searching. During this break Jiraiya shows him the power of a specific jutsu called the Rasengan. Right now they are right at the bottom of a cliff. Jiraiya hands Naruto a small water balloon.

"What's this for?" Naruto asks him.

"You remember that jutsu I did right?" He asks Naruto. The boy nods and he continues with, "So, what happened?"

"You hit some thug with a ball of wind and they blew away, while spinning in mid air." Naruto says to him.

"With the tree climbing type of chakra, your chakra level must be maintained by focusing your mind and keeping that concentration. With the water walking you release a fixed amount of chakra continuously. With this water balloon, you are to focus your water walking exercise into this by spinning the water inside by using your chakra in a fixed amount constantly and pop it." Jiraiya explains to him.

'That sounds easy…' Naruto begins trying to spin the water inside, and easily gets it done. At that moment Jiraiya falls asleep, much less to Naruto's chagrin. But he probably had a good reason, because by nightfall, Naruto is still trying to pop it.

"Goddammit! What's wrong with this thing!" Naruto complains as he tries to spin it again.

This continues even onto the next day, when even after he rests for that day he feels depressed that he can't do it. The next day he accomplishes this task; by holding the water balloon with his left hand and repeatedly bringing his right hand into it, he makes the water inside swirl and rotate. The secret in it wasn't making the water swirl into one direction, but in many different ones.

That day Jiraiya hands Naruto a rubber ball. He then holds up one for himself. "For stage two, I want you to bust this ball. It's one hundred times harder than the balloon."

To demonstrate the ball he's holding explodes easily, as if it was made of paper. Naruto then tries his own tactic from before, and while the ball does change at first, it returns to normal quickly. "It's so hard!"

"The first step is to spin, while the second is to add power. If there is no water then it is hard to feel the chakra moving. It's hard to power up the chakra." Jiraiya says to him. He then walks away while leaving him to his training to gather information.

Nightfall arrives, and Naruto is on the ground, tired and frantic at the fact that he can't bust it. 'Wind should be my natural affinity! Why is this so hard?'

Tomorrow morning Naruto can be seen still working on it. Jiraiya comes up to him and says, "Hey Naruto."

"Yeah, what is it?" He asks rudely.

"Go into town and buy lunch for the two of us." He says to him. Naruto looks at him with anger. Just as he was about to yell, the Toad ninja says, "Might I add that you are learning a jutsu from me?"

Naruto gives up and goes into town, buying them bento. He then returns and hands the old man his. The blond ninja then asks, "Can you give me a little help?"

"We're not eating here. We'll eat while down the road." Jiraiya says as he stands up and takes the lunch. He then tells Naruto, "Unless you think on your own and find the key, you'll never get it right no matter how much you try. You're a ninja, not a baby."

"Of course…how silly of me." Naruto says as they begin to travel.

That night, Naruto drops the rubber ball to the ground, frustrated at failing so much. He then looks at his hands and sighs. 'Even when I use lightning on my hands, there is no pain. But the harder I try in this, I end up getting this painful feeling.'

A light bulb then flashes in Naruto's mind, as he now realizes something. "Wait! Now I get it," He then takes the ball and holds it with both hands. 'The pain is telling me how much I'm releasing. If I bring it to the limit of my pain, I may be able to pop it.'

Naruto brings his chakra to the very limit of his strength, and soon the ball does pop. But instead of exploding to pieces, it pops a small hole. He then sighs in depression.

"Well, well, it looks like you were able to improve a bit." Jiraiya says to him.

"A bit? All I did was pop a hole!" – Naruto

"Now, now, don't be such an ass." He says to the boy, handing him a bar of sea-salt ice cream. Naruto takes it with his left hand, dropping the ball, and eats it. "Once you gotten this far, the rest is just a simple trick."

"A trick…" Naruto then thinks about it for a bit, and a smirk rises up slowly on his face. "Wait, I think I got it…no, wait…that wouldn't work."

The old man sighs and falls to his knees…teaching this dumb ass is harder than it looks.

Elsewhere...

"So, do I get promoted to Chunin?" Haku asks the Mizukage. He and his team went to Kiri some time after Naruto left. The ice user is now in front of her desk.

"We do not know yet. You were never given a chance to fight, so we won't be able to tell. Sorry, Haku-chan." Mei says to him. The ice user says as he walks away, leaving her presence quietly. 'Don't worry Haku. You're the only one who can succeed me…'

The Next Day…

"Ah, tanzaku castle has such a fabulous view even down here." A dark haired woman says as she looks up at a large castle. Beside her is a woman with blond hair and twin ponytails. "I guess that's why they call it the Treasure of Arts!"

"Don't waste anymore time Shizune. We must leave as soon as possible." The blond woman says to her. She then turns to face her, exposing the giant rack she holds underneath her haori to the girl, and the pig following them.

"What's wrong, Tsunade-sama? We got this beautiful view, and for free!" She comments. As they leave the castle, it suddenly explodes into a fiery blaze. The entire complex razes to the ground.

Both females gasp in shock as they look at it. Out from the smoke walk two figures. The first guy is consumed by flames; he has a black version of a Chunin vest on, with red fiery hair done up in spikes. He has blue eyes that seem to penetrate through the smoke cloud, and a red scarf that hangs over his body. The guy next to him is Kaizen.

"That guy!" Shizune shouts when she sees them.

"It's him…" Tsunade says, her eyes directed to the fireman.

The flames lift off of his body as he walks out from the rubble. He then says to her with a grin, that also exposes his sharp canines, "I found you, you Christmas cake."

Elsewhere, Naruto continues down a road with Jiraiya by his side. As he does he thinks about what happened last night:

Jiraiya taught him the secret in popping the ball, in which he would have to concentrate on a single point. The problem was since he didn't have a concentration point for his wind chakra, he drew a symbol on the middle of his right palm to get it. At that point he a second one. Naruto tried this again with a second one, and it works out much quickly.

Naruto looks up to the old man and ask him, "Ero-sennin, can you tell me what the third step is?"

"You can do it while walking." Jiraiya then takes out a balloon and blows in it. He then tosses the balloon to him after tying it together.

"What's this?" Naruto asks the old guy.

"The first step is spin. The second is power. The third requires," Jiraiya then holds up his right hand, and his chakra swirls in his hand in the form of a perfect orb. "Charging it. You have to max out the speed and power of your chakra, but make a wall within the balloon and concentrate your power."

"So all I have to do is spin my chakra around in the form of a ball, while making sure the balloon doesn't pop." Naruto says, finally understanding him. "But why a ball?"

"Well you see this is what would happen up to the second step." Naruto watches as Jiraiya slams his Rasengan into a tree, but only in the form of a tornado. This leaves a spiral scrape mark on the bark. He then makes the real thing, and slams it into the tree again. It bears a hole straight through it, tearing the tree apart. "By keeping the tree in its ball form, the power doesn't waver. It begins to spin faster, and the power will be highly concentrated."

"Okay." Naruto tries the technique himself, by spinning his chakra while making it powerful. But after two minutes he realizes that it isn't doing any good. Naruto then adds more power, and the balloon explodes. His wind releases from inside it.

"Hey, don't slack off. You need to charge 100% of your spin and your power into it." Jiraiya says to the young ninja. Naruto pales slightly as he thinks over the move. It really is harder than he first thought. "That's what happens when you learn an A-rank highly powerful jutsu."

Naruto sighs as they continue down the road.

Meanwhile…

"What the hell are you doing here?" The old lady questions the fire user.

"What? No hi, no hello, no how are you doing? I thought you liked me." He says to the girl with a grin.

"Cut the bullshit. I never liked you." Tsunade replies to him.

"Ura ha ha ha ha! You're still denying it?" He laughs, throwing his head back and all. He looks her directly in the eye and grins. "Surely you're not mad about that time I robbed you blind, eh?"

"You stole all my earnings in one fell swoop! There's no way I could ever like you!" She roars at him.

"Look, whatever it is you're here for, we don't want it. There's nothing you can offer us that we would want." Shizune adds, causing the two men to look at her. Kaizen grits his teeth in anger.

"Forget this persuasion! Let's just beat them up and drag them away!" He says, walking towards Shizune while holding his right hand up.

His fire friend grabs hold of his hand and pulls it down. "Now, now, let's not lose our temper. We're here to make you an offer not even a sucker like you can lose."

"You have until the count of five to get out of my sight." Tsunade threatens, her eyes tensing and glaring at the two ninjas. "Five."

"We have recently joined an organization that is working towards the goal of seeking nirvana." Kaizen says to them.

"Four."

"Our master knows about your abilities and wants to help you use them to the fullest." He continues.

"Three."

"By joining him you can clear up any debts you may still have." – Kaizen

"Two."

Kaizen sighs and looks back at his friend. "It's not working. What do we do?"

"One."

"If you join us, he can bring back those love ones of yours." The fire user says to her. Tsunade twitches in shock at his words. Her and Shizune remain silent as they look at him.

"Isn't that what you want most right?" He asks her. A grin then rises up on his face. "Our master is a genius in building devices; one of his greatest works is a sword empowered by dark matter, used to transform into ten different forms. He can easily build a machine that can resurrect that kid and your lover."

Tsunade looks down at herself, thinking long and hard about what she should do. Shizune turns to her mentor and says, "Tsunade-sama, you mustn't get caught up in what he's saying. You know how evil these two are!"

"Be quiet, Shizune." Tsunade replies. Shizune sighs as she looks at her, and backs away from her. She knows how much Tsunade loved those two, her little brother and her lover, but would she really work with such a terrible person to bring them back?

"You need time right? You have until tomorrow morning. Let's go, Honatsu!" The lightning user says to the fireman. He then holds his hand out, and a bolt of lightning strikes down at him, and takes them away.

Later That Day…

Naruto enters a casino with vague interest; Jiraiya told him that Tsunade likes to gamble, so some people should know where she is. Inside he could see hundreds of people gambling and wasting their money on cards, slot machines, and dice games. He comes before a blond lady by a slot machine and asks her, "Hey uh, I'm looking for an old lady with blond hair."

"Like some old lady comes in here!" She replies, looking down at the kid. He then walks away to an unmanned slot machine, showing interest with the thing. 'That kid looks a little familiar.'

"So, I put a coin in, and then pull down the trigger…" Naruto says to himself. He holds up a coin, which emits a small static cling, and slips it through the slot. The blond woman watches as he prepares to play it.

'Why is there a kid in here anyway? Besides, he won't be getting anything out of these-' as she thinks these words, Naruto pulls on the lever. The numbers roll at a decent speed, before a static shock emits throughout the entire machine. The rollers then stop, showing triple Jackpot. The lights then go off to expose the fact that Naruto hit the jackpot. The lady's jaw drops as she watches the yen pour out. "WHAT THE!"

Naruto smiles as he gathers all the coins in his frog moneybag. As he walks out the blond woman watches as he leaves, and you could see that she is indeed Tsunade. She gets up and follows after him. 'I'll feel bad about this in the morning, but I don't really care at this point.'

Tsunade reaches out and grabs Naruto's left shoulder. "Hold up kid. You just got here…you need to build up a fortune!"

"I do?" He replies to her.

"Yes, in-fact you should come with me." Naruto follows the woman back into the casino. Tsunade then places him before her on a table, handing him a set of cards. "You know how to draw poker, right?"

"Uh, not really-

"You do? That's great!" Tsunade says quickly, interrupting his words. She plans to rob this sucker of all he owns. She then takes out a briefcase full of cash and places it on the table, which is actually a loan. "Will you be betting all your earnings?"

"Uh, yeah." Naruto says as he places his bag of coins there. Tsunade smirks confidently as she looks at him.

Both ninjas draw cards from the slot, five each. Tsunade smiles as she looks at her cards. She throws her head back in laughter as she places the cards on the table. "A full house! What do you got?"

"Gee, does that beat me? All I got is a pair. A pair of ones," Naruto places two cards on the table, a club ace and a spade ace. He then places the other two down, a heart ace and a diamond ace, saying, "And another pair of ones."

Tsunade's face slowly turns its smile into a frown. Her face tenses into sadness and tears begin to slowly form in her eyes. This woman has just become irreparably broke by a simpleton child.

Naruto looks up at her, and after noticing the broke look on her face he says, "Hey, I do win don't I? Thanks for the game!"

The ninja then takes the woman's loan and walks out the casino with it, and his wallet. Tsunade stays sitting in her seat in shock, that dazed look present in her eyes. Shizune comes into the casino and finds her. "Ah, Tsunade-sama! I've been looking for you…oh no. How much did you?"

Tsunade remains silent even as Shizune talks to her. She tries snapping her fingers to try and bring her back to reality, and it fails completely.

Meanwhile, Naruto walks out of the casino and comes before Jiraiya. He asks him, "Did you find…what's with all that stuff?"

"Oh, I won these from a slot machine with my last coin. I earned this briefcase from some lady." Naruto says as he shows him his money. Jiraiya's mouth falls open in shock.

'You got to be kidding me! He won so much from a single coin, and stole all that from an adult!' Jiraiya complains in his head. He can tell the boy has an amazing talent in gambling, despite the hard time he's going through learning a technique. Jiraiya then hands Naruto a key. "Here, go back to the hotel and practice the technique."

"Oh fine." Naruto says as he heads for the hotel, with all his money carefully held together. After heading inside he begins working on making the Rasengan in the balloon, and fails several times.

Back with Jiraiya he enters the casino to see if anyone has seen him. As he looks around, he spots Tsunade and Shizune, still where Naruto left her. The old man sits down beside her and says, "Tsunade, I'm glad I could find you…Tsunade?"

"Jiraiya-sama?" Shizune says as she notices her. "What are you doing here?"

"Never mind that now, Shizune. What's wrong with her?" He asks, snapping her fingers at the woman. He then reaches then to grab her luscious boob, and receives a bone shattering punch to the face from the old lady herself. "She's fine!"

"Jiraiya? What are you doing here?" – Tsunade

Naruto pops another balloon, and curses at the fact that he failed. He then looks down at his hands, thinking over what he was doing wrong. Every time he's using this technique he is trying his hardest not to convert the jutsu into lightning or wind energy. He then gasps when he realizes what he's doing.

"I'm trying to keep my chakra into chakra form, and not into wind. By doing this I have to keep it just like Jiraiya's. But, maybe if I did it as a wind dragon power instead of just a ball of chakra swirling like it was wind, then I could probably get better results." Naruto then holds his right hand under his left, and forces his chakra into them. As he does he forces his mind to focus on the technique Jiraiya instructed to him. But before he could begin his attempt, there's a knock on the door. This messes up his concentration and his wind technique blows up, scraping along the walls of the room. "Uh oh."

Naruto walks over to the door and opens it, only to find Shizune in front of him. The boy blinks twice before taking a moment to look her up and down. The girl blushes a little from his gaze and says, "Excuse me, are you with Jiraiya-sama? He said I would find you here."

"Uh…okay…look, let me tell you the truth; I kind of have a fiancé, well three actually now, so I'm afraid we have to know a little more about each other before we can be together." Naruto says to the pretty adult.

"What? No, I'm not here for that! He said I could join you while she was with Tsunade-sama." Shizune says as Naruto lifts his left eyebrow in shock.

"Oh. Sorry for that. I thought that pervert sent me a prostitute because of all the money I won from that lady." Naruto says to her, moving to the side to allow her entry.

"Oh, trust me; I'm still a-wait, you won money from a woman? What did this woman look like?" Shizune asks him at the end.

"Some grown up with blond hair. She didn't seem happy about losing though." Naruto explains to her.

'…He's the one who robbed her blind, isn't he?' She says in her head.

"So is she coming back?" Naruto asks Shizune.

"Well," Her thoughts go to the deal Kaizen and Honatsu made with her teacher. She herself agrees that Tsunade should join Naruto and Jiraiya back to Konoha, but that decision is her master's, and only hers alone. "Tsunade-sama said she would give him her answer tomorrow morning."

"I see…I'm going to go train. Make yourself at home." Naruto says to her. Shizune immediately begins to strip out of her clothes, and Naruto takes this time to leave quickly.

Outside Naruto spots the lady from the casino conversing with Jiraiya. The two are heading over to a bar apparently. It is at this moment that Naruto realizes she must be the Tsunade woman. 'Where are they going?'

The Very Next Day…

"Nice to see you again, Tsunade. Would you like to give me your answer?" Honatsu asks Tsunade. The two ninjas are standing on an open field, with Kaizen and Shizune beside them.

"Yes…I've thought long and hard about what I should do…and I've made my decision…" Tsunade begins as she looks into the eyes of the fire user. She then takes in a deep breath and says, "I decline. You can find someone else to join your group."

"What?" Honatsu questions as his eyes tense in anger. As his rage flares, smoke emits from his body.

"I refuse, you flaming brat! Now get out of here before I kill you!" She threatens while tightening her fist.

'Thank goodness. She's not going through with the deal.' - Shizune

Honatsu grits his teeth as he looks at her, exposing his canines. With a smile he says, "You really don't get it do you? This is not a yes or no deal…you are going to join us, and that's that!"

Tsunade, already tired of listening to him, dashes towards the fire ninja. There she would pound him to dust and leave his ashes to scatter into the wind. Kaizen steps before Honatsu and takes out a kunai. He then flips it down and slashes at his right wrist, causing blood to gush out. Tsunade stops immediately in her tracks, her fear of blood arising in this situation. Kaizen then slams the old woman in the face with the same hand, sending her flying. This also drips some of the blood onto her face and cleavage.

"Tsunade-sama!" Shizune rushes in to save her mentor. 'How could they have known about her phobia!'

"Our master has extensive knowledge about several of the greatest ninjas around. One of the things he wanted us to remember about you is your fear of blood." Kaizen says as he places his kunai back in his pouch. He then makes a maniacal laugh as he looks down at the old woman.

Flames appear underneath Kaizen's feet as he jumps up into the air. "We don't need that girl though. Karyu no Hoko!"

The fire ninja breathes in and gathers flames in his lungs, before releasing a large tongue of flames back at her. Shizune jumps away from the flames, but the bottom of her dress is slightly burned off. 'I've heard of an ability like this. It makes the user one with his element, and gives them the aspect of a dragon.'

"Karyu no Enchu!" Honatsu holds his arms back, and flames light at the tip of his elbows. This rockets him towards Shizune, the impact being an explosive strike. The smoke clears away, showing Honatsu standing on top of Shizune's bleeding head, pushing hard down to force her head further into the dirt. He turns to Kaizen, who is holding a pair of handcuffs in his hands. "Make sure she can't use any chakra when we take her away."

"Stop!" A voice shouts out. The two ninjas look back to see Naruto running towards them down the field.

'Naruto-kun?' Shizune looks up after recognizing that voice.

'It's that boy from the casino!' Thinks Tsunade, as she looks up to see the ninja coming towards them. 'What's he doing here?'

"It's that kid…" Kaizen says out loud as he watches Naruto coming down.

"You know that boy?" Honatsu asks his partner.

"That boy seems to hold the same bloodline as you, because all my arsenal of Raiton jutsu couldn't defeat him." Kaizen explains. Honatsu turns his attention back to Naruto after hearing about his power.

"What are you doing here, Naruto-kun? Where's Jiraiya-sama?" Shizune calls out to him. Her outburst causes Honatsu to step on her skull even harder. She yelps in pain.

"Hey! Stop it! Leave them alone!" Naruto shouts at them.

Honatsu holds his right hand out and shoots a ball of fire at him. Naruto jumps away and evades it. He looks up at the man and sees his canines, and his eyes widen in shock as he realizes that he has similar fangs like him. "You're Naruto right? What's your last name?"

"Uzumaki. What's it to you?" Naruto answers him. He then stands up and holds his fists up, electricity sparking around them.

'Uzumaki, Naruto…then he's the nine tailed brat Jiraiya mentioned last night.' Tsunade says in her head as she looks at him. Kaizen seems to have left her alone for the moment since her phobia has left her immobile.

"Uzumaki, huh? Then you must be Kushina's child. I thought her illness would kill her before she could reproduce another bloodline user." At Honatsu's words Naruto's eyes widen, and then his eyebrows lower. He glares at the fire dragon in anger.

"You know my mom?" Naruto asks him, pointing his right hand index finger at him.

"Not so much. I saw the woman as one of my rivals, but she didn't care about me at all. All she could do was play pranks on me during our fights…it made me so mad!" He grumbles, his anger flaring faster than his fire. "I was so glad I received these dragon powers, but I found out she was dead before I could fight her again."

"You mean, you hold the same Hadouryu power as myself and my mom?" – Naruto

"Hadouryu? Is that what they're calling it now a days? I much prefer the original name of Metsuryu Mado (Dragon Slayer Magical Arts). But I guess some would get the name wrong when everyone else who can use the bloodline naturally is dead." Naruto opens his eyes in shock as he says that.

"What?" Naruto's fist release electricity as he looks at him.

"In order to make sure my entry into my master's organization was permanent, I worked alongside Yagura in exterminating those 'cursed bloodline users' as that Jinchuuriki would say, and brought back a sample of their blood…I wonder what happened to him…" Honatsu says to them. He then thinks about the Sanbi Jinchuuriki from Kiri.

Naruto charges at the fire ninja and draws the Twilight Star. He slams Gilgamesh down at him, and shouts, "You monster!"

Honatsu blocks the sword with his right hand, but the sword reverts to normal. It barely cuts through his arm before being repelled by his flames. Naruto looks at his sword with a stun look. 'What? Why didn't it work?'

"My natural affinity is fire, and that makes me a fire dragon. Metal objects will melt before even touching me." Honatsu tells the little boy. Naruto continues to try and cut through, but the blade begins to heat up, and he drops it before his hands could burn. "Naruto Uzumaki…you're from Konoha…for me to not have heard about you must mean you're either some loser no one knows about, or you're a genin."

"Naruto-kun, get away! Go find Jiraiya-sama and get his help!" Shizune says to the blond ninja.

"He's still suffering from diarrhea!" Naruto says to her.

"Why?" – Shizune

"I don't know!" – Naruto

'Maybe I shouldn't have drugged him…' – Tsunade

"Karyu no Tekken!" Honatsu charges his other fist with flames, and punches Naruto in the face. This leaves a burn on the ninja's face. Honatsu turns to Kaizen and says, "Kaizen, cuff the girl. We're leaving with her."

"No you won't!" Shizune shouts as she draws her needle launcher on her arm. She fires it at Kaizen, who didn't see it coming at first.

"So? A bunch of needles won't kill me." Kaizen grabs the needles with his bare left hand, and feels something moist and sharp poking at him. He opens his hand and looks down at it. After seeing that the needles pricked him, and were laced with poison, he says, "Uh oh."

Kaizen then drops the needles to the ground and gasps. Shizune smirks confidently seeing her tactic worked. "Gotcha."

"You stupid bitch! Raiton: Goraikyu no Jutsu!" Kaizen fires a giant ball of lightning at her.

Shizune jumps away from the jutsu, but receives a hundred thousand volts of electricity from a lightning bolt above. She falls back down to the ground, and sees Kaizen holding his hand up. "Give me the antidote, now!"

"Like I would carry the antidote on me for you!" She says, before spitting a set of needles at his face.

He blocks the needles with his forehead protector, and unleashes a second Juu Man Volts at her. She falls to the ground in pain, her body paralyzed from the electricity she suffered. Kaizen walks over to her while sparking with lightning.

"Rairyu no Hoko!" Naruto opens his mouth and releases a blast of condensed electricity at Honatsu. He receives the attack before activating Kawarimi, replacing himself with a wooden log. Naruto tracks Honatsu through the smell of smoke and chases after him. "Rairyu no Kaminari Punch!"

"Karyu no Tekken!" Naruto and Honatsu charge at one another with their fists charged with their respective element. The impact of both fists hitting the other results in a powerful explosion.

Naruto comes flying out from the explosion, landing beside Tsunade. His shirt and pants have become tattered and sliced, even more than they were before. The boy picks himself up and looks up at the fire ninja.

"Pathetic. You have no talent in staying a ninja." Honatsu says to Uzumaki. He's still lying on the ground. "This is just sad. You're more or less a danger to your friends and a real failure. I'd figure the son of Kushina Uzumaki would be a much stronger person."

"Shut up! You have no right to say her name!" Naruto shouts at him.

"Stay down. You don't know anything about me, so there should be no grudge in your heart towards me. Although I might have to kill you, because I can't allow a pure Metsuryu Mado user to live." Honatsu says to him. A fiery look flares in his eyes.


	13. Ippitsu Soujou

Omake-

"So, what happened to your eye, Sasuke?" Naruto asks his former friend, who is now standing before him. Apparently, Sasuke has lost his left eye.

"What does it matter to you? You're just some lucky kid who got by with the easy things instead of taking the hard path!" Sasuke replies as he charges at Naruto with his chokuto sword.

Naruto draws a katana and clashes swords with him. The two begin a struggle for power. Sasuke, looking at Naruto with his Sharingan left eye that is also his only eye left, he injects his Chidori to run through the blade. This allows his weapon to slowly cut through the blade.

"There are no shortcuts to victory." Naruto replies. He releases his left hand and injects the Kyubi's chakra into it. With that same hand he stabs his index and middle finger into Sasuke's left eye, poking and pulling it off in ninja fashion.

Sasuke falls backwards, screaming and writhing in pain while holding his left eye socket. Naruto looks at the eye down at his hand, and throws it into a wall. The eye splatters into the wall, even as Sasuke continues to try and get over his pain. "Although, there was no victory I've ever had shorter than that."

_**Chapter 13: Ippitsu Soujou

* * *

**_

"Honatsu! This bitch poisoned me!" Kaizen says to the fire ninja. He sighs while turning around to face him.

"Damn you're useless…" Honatsu tells his partner. He then looks at Tsunade, who is still paralyzed with fear of blood. Naruto glares at Honatsu with a scary look, while the fire dragon smirks. "Ooh, what a scary face, coming from an out of place genin. Compared to me, that girl behind Kaizen, Tsunade, and me you're just a small bug in a hurricane. Stay out of our way, or die."

Honatsu punches Naruto's left leg with Tekken, busting the leg tendon and making a compound fracture wound. He cries out in pain as he feels his attack. As Honatsu walks away, the young Uzumaki holds his right hand up at the fire user to try and send a stream of electricity to him. The ninja turns around to face Naruto, and his body becomes engulfed with flames.

The flames around Honatsu create a thermal lance by heating the air around it to a super high temperature, and this refracts electricity. Naruto gives up and looks at him, as the flames disperse. Ignoring the genin he continues towards Tsunade and grabs her by her left wrist. "Now, you are to come with me. Do it now, and maybe I'll spare those two."

"Wait." Naruto says as he stands back up. He glares up at Honatsu and holds his hands together. Honatsu fires a wave of flames at Naruto. He explodes into smoke, catching him and Tsunade off guard.

"Rasengan!" Naruto comes from behind Tsunade and makes a big leap towards Honatsu. In his right hand is the Rasengan, a complete one at that. It seems to be a bit unstable, since the air around it is blowing a fierce wind.

'That technique!' Tsunade easily recognizes that move he is using.

Honatsu ducks underneath his ball of wind, and a scalpel slips out from his glove wrist. He sweeps it where Naruto's right leg is, cutting his foot tendon. Naruto falls to the ground, his foot bleeding a dangerous amount.

Naruto looks back at him while gritting his teeth in anger. "Damn. I can't keep up with him now…"

"I cut your foot's tendon. You won't be moving anytime soon." Honatsu says as he holds up the scalpel. Even from where he lays he could see the tip is lit on fire.

'It takes both hands to make one. But I need to stop him from moving so damn much…' Naruto says in his head. He then forces himself to stand, despite the bleeding he's going through.

"What was Jiraiya thinking, teaching that kid a technique he can't master?" Tsunade states, in a low voice.

"What's the matter? Are you afraid? Do you want to run away?" – Honatsu

"What kind of future Hokage would I be if I ran away?" The young Uzumaki says. Naruto looks at the fire ninja, who blankly looks at him. Tsunade gasps when she hears those words.

"Naruto Uzumaki…for a weakling like you to possess a bloodline as incredible as Metsuryu Mado is nothing short of a miracle, but for a loser like you to become someone like that is an impossible dream. What makes you think a loser like you can become someone like that?" Honatsu questions the little storm bringer.

"Because there is nothing in this world that isn't needed!" Naruto shouts back.

Kaizen looks back at Naruto, slowly feeling the effects of the poison Shizune shot at him. The images of Manabu rush through his mind. 'Those words…why do they remind me of him?'

The boy glares at Honatsu with determined and fierce eyes. The fire dragon smiles as he looks at him. "Is that really the look you want to be giving me? If you die here you won't become Hokage…"

"A person who can speak so calmly about their dream can never think of running from it. If I don't fight back then I can kiss my dream goodbye!" Naruto answers him.

Honatsu grabs him by the collar and tosses him in the air. His arms extend flames as he shouts, "Karyu no Yokugeki!"

Both his 'wings' come together and slam Naruto into the ground. He lands in front of Tsunade. Even with this pain Naruto stands up on both his feet, and faces Honatsu. He then says, "I've had enough of you!"

"So have I." Honatsu holds his scalpel and charges at Naruto. He would slice clean through his neck.

Naruto reaches out and grabs Honatsu's scalpel hand, which is his right, with his left. This comes at a cost, for the sharp knife cuts his hand. He increases his grip on the adult, and forces a static shock to run through both their hands. "I got you!"

"Please! I can easily get free!" Honatsu says as he kicks him in the stomach. But even as he tries to pull free he fails to do so. "What's going on?"

"I'm a lightning dragon as you would say. Because of this I control all forms of electricity. So, even a static cling with the power of a hundred volts would be strong enough to keep us tied to a metal object like this." Naruto says to him. He holds his right hand out while the wind around them begins to tremble. It then gathers into his hand in the form of the Rasengan. "I'm also a wind dragon. Because of this all of the wind is mine to own. So whenever I need to summon an attack like this, I can force the wind to spin myself, instead of relying on my other hand."

"What?" Honatsu watches Naruto lift his sphere up and shoves it hard into his stomach. The compacted nature and moving speed of the chakra is making the orb grind into his flesh.

"Tenryu no," Naruto releases the static cling on his hand and Honatsu's, and blows the fire dragon away. He flies all the way into a boulder, destroying it and shattering it to pieces. The violent wind of the Rasengan even scrapes the ground it touches. "Rasengan!"

(Sky Dragon's Spiraling Sphere)

Honatsu emerges from the smoke created from the explosion the Rasengan made, glaring at Naruto while his eyes flare with fire. Blood oozes and drips from the wound the other dragon ninja made. "You…you burn me up, boy!"

"Yeah…how would you like some more?" Naruto falls to the ground after his taunt, landing on his back.

"Naruto!" Tsunade calls out, overcoming her illness for that moment to run to him.

'It seems that jutsu was a last ditch effort…I can hardly move now…' "Kaizen, we're leaving! Forget the deal!" The fire dragon shouts, falling down to his knees. He turns to Kaizen, who is already on his knees coughing up blood. 'Damn, the poison is affecting him. Screw it, I'm leaving by myself.'

Honatsu creates a flame underneath his feet, and levitates into the air with it. Using the fire as a magic carpet he flies away into the sky, leaving Naruto, Shizune, Tsunade and Kaizen behind. Shizune crawls over to where the boy and her mentor are, and helps heal his body. Kaizen falls to the ground face forward, coughing up torrents of blood.

'I can't believe I'm going to die…this is pathetic…it makes me wish I was a better friend to him.' Kaizen says in his mind. He then closes his eyes as he watches the two females heal the blond ninja's body.

After healing his body, Tsunade personally carries both Shizune and Naruto towards the hotel they were staying in. Shizune could easily see blood splatters on her face and body, and realizes that she has somehow overcome it. She then looks at Naruto with great interest, realizing she's the reason her heart has changed a bit.

When Tsunade brings the two to the hotel, she immediately backs away, smelling something horrible inside the room. She also hears a lot of farting noises. 'I really shouldn't have given him those laxatives in his drink. Well, that's what you get for trying to hit on me.'

The Next Morning...

Shizune slowly turns to her left in her sleep, without noticing Naruto right beside her. She opens her eyes and spots the boy. She looks down at her body and gasps, realizing her kimono has opened up a bit. She quickly crawls away from him, blushing in embarrassment and holding her clothes together.

Outside the room both Jiraiya and Tsunade can both be seen laughing at her. The female apprentice glares at her mentor, and shouts, "Tsunade-sama, did you move me onto his bed while I was sleep!"

"Of course! You are desperate for a man right?" Tsunade says to her while still snickering.

Naruto opens his eyes while looking up, waking up to the noise in front of him. Shizune then continues with, "I'm not so desperate that I need to sleep with a kid!"

"You could want to do it. After all he already has a fiancé." Jiraiya adds, remembering Mei but not Samui or Sakura.

"You mean he wasn't bullshitting?" – Shizune

"What makes you think I bullshit? I'm always serious!" Naruto yells, finally gaining their attention.

"Oh hey, you're up! You alright?" The old man asks the little kid.

"Yeah. I mastered the Rasengan! It wasn't a big deal!" Naruto says as he sits up in his bed.

"Oh really? Show it to me." At the old man's words, Naruto holds his right hand up and forms the Tenryu no Rasengan. Jiraiya leans down and takes a good look at it, and says, "Hmm, this is wind, not chakra. Instead of using chakra you used your natural affinity and your bloodline to form a Rasengan made purely out of wind."

"…Wow…you could tell?" Naruto asks him, looking down at his Rasengan. Now that he looks at it the orb looks whiter compared to the blue one he made before.

"What a cheap way to make a shortcut, but rather clever of you to think of it. Keep trying and you make a normal Rasengan better than this." Jiraiya says to him.

"Yeah!" Naruto adds.

"So, I assume you still want me to come back to Konoha and become Hokage, right." Tsunade asks Jiraiya. Naruto looks up at Tsunade and sighs while looking away; it can't be helped. "I'm not going back, no matter what."

"Tsunade, I can't help but wonder what reason you could have for disagreeing. After all, you're the only one who can-"

"I want to make a wager with you." Naruto says to the old lady. Tsunade looks down at him from the corner of her eyes. "We'll play a game. If I win you join Konoha as their Hokage, no questions asked."

"Hmm…" Tsunade takes a minute to think about it. 'This is the same brat that won all that money from me…this is a chance for me to win it back!' "I accept, under a few conditions."

"What kind?" Naruto asks as he gets up. He stands up and looks at her, noticing the devious grin on her face.

"We'll play roulette, a game involving a ball falling into a single slot on a rotating board. You pick one of the numbers on the board, and if it lands on it you win." Tsunade says as she explains the game to him. She and Naruto walk into the living room and she henges a lamp into a roulette board.

"And what happens if I lose?" He asks her.

"I don't come back, and you lose all the money you won in the casino yesterday." Tsunade says to him while holding up his frog wallet and his briefcase.

"How did you get those?" – Naruto

"Oh boy…" Jiraiya mumbles. He closes his eyes and face palms himself.

"I don't know…" Naruto says to himself. This deal seems a little too good for him to go forward with. After all if he wins he won't receive anything except the knowledge that he brought the female Hokage to Konoha.

"If you win, you also get this necklace." Tsunade takes her shiny green necklace off and places it with his money.

Shizune gasps when she sees that she's betting that item; it's the one piece of her past she owns that holds value. Even though she loses money and can never win it back, Tsunade would never sell that necklace, despite it's worth, because it belonged to her grandfather Hashirama Senju.

"Why would I want that?" Naruto questions the woman.

"That belonged to the Shodaime. It holds great value. If you sold t you could purchase 3 mountains." Jiraiya says to Naruto.

"You had me at Shodaime." Naruto says as he sits down by the roulette.

Tsunade sits by the roulette as well. She takes out a ball and spins the roulette by its top. She then drops the tiny ball and allows it to run along the roulette. It lands on 34, one of the highest numbers. "YES! Luck is finally with me!"

"My turn!" Naruto takes the ball and spins the roulette. He then drops the ball and allows it to roll. It ends up on 00.

Tsunade looks at the number, and begins to laugh. She gets too into her laugh and starts holding her sides. This laughter goes to the point where she pounds on the table, causing the roulette to bounce up. The ball bounces up in the air and lands on number 36, the highest number on the roulette.

Tsunade stops laughing to look at the number, and she gains the longest stare you've ever seen. Infact, everyone except Naruto does.

"NO FUCKING WAY!" – Everyone except Naruto

"I'm on number 36! That puts me ahead of you!" Naruto says as he punches the air triumphantly. He smiles as he looks at the loser. Tsunade watches as he takes away his winnings, and holds the necklace up with his left hand.

After packing up, Naruto, Tsunade, Shizune and Jiraiya step outside the hotel and prepare to return to Konoha. Naruto is still holding the necklace he won, staring at the amulet he holds. Tsunade sighs as he examines her former necklace, and remembers all the things that have happened in the past involving that cursed amulet.

But as she thinks about Naruto, his mastering the Rasengan, defeating that fire ninja, and saving her and Shizune, she could tell he would be fine while holding it. After all, this boy will become a future Hokage.

"I don't really need this old lady. Here, you take it back." Naruto says as he hands her back the necklace.

"You keep it…and don't call me old lady you brat!" Tsunade shouts at him.

"I'll only call you by your name when you stop deceiving people and return to your real age!" Naruto says back. The old woman's anger flares at his words.

"You wanna take this outside, brat!" She threatens, brushing her left hand up her right arm like she had sleeves on.

"We are outside!" Naruto answers.

Shizune sighs as she watches the two messes around. Naruto backs away and charges at her with his left fist charged with electricity. Tsunade flicks her right index finger and flicks his head up. This cancels out his punch as he loses concentration. The woman then aims her finger at his forehead, and flinches him into closing his eyes.

Instead of hitting him, she lowers her hand and lifts his chin up, doing the same to his head as well. She then leans in and kisses him on the forehead. Naruto opens his eyes and looks at the older woman. Tsunade smiles at him and says, "Become a good man."

Naruto pauses as he looks at her. He then smiles before nodding, his fangs exposed in his smile. Jiraiya closes his eyes while smiling at Tsunade's actions. Shizune grows a small smile on her face as she looks at Naruto, a tiny blush present there as well.

Some time after leaving that village, the four ninjas and that pig finally reach Konoha. The moment she became Hokage she works on the damaged bodies of Kakashi, Sasuke and Lee. Her powerful medical jutsu easily saves the Sharingan users from Itachi's Tsukiyomi.

She also works on Lee and his wounds from Gaara. But with the extent of the damage left on him from the sand, he would have to take surgery. This isn't the only other thing she's done; she was also told about the Chunin Exams and how it went on.

Tsunade then sends out pigeon carriers to Kiri and Suna, stating those who make it to the rank of Chunin: Shikamaru Nara and Haku.

Now, Naruto is at Ichiraku Ramen eating, well ramen, beside Iruka and Samui. Samui is just enjoying his company while Iruka is listening to his rants. On his forehead is a second, brand new, black cloth, forehead protector. He receives a replacement since his first one got cut in half by Gaara's demon form. "Why do Haku and Shikamaru get to go on to Chunin? Haku didn't even fight, and Shikamaru lost in his match!"

"Haku helped prevent great casualties on our end during the war. His expertise and brilliance was something we all needed." Iruka tells the boy. "And Shikamaru fought his battles with intelligence...the village rated him high and he got accepted."

Samui brushes his blond hair lightly as he eats, most likely to calm him down. Naruto continues with, "Well, at least Sasuke didn't get promoted. But how come I didn't? I beat Neji and Gaara in his demon state!"

"Well, you took advantage of your…secret power…to win. Not only that, but you didn't show many Chunin qualities…" Naruto sighs as he listens to him, smiling as Samui brushes through his hair. Iruka looks at Samui, and asks, "I've been meaning to ask, but who is she?"

"Well, she's my second fiancé. Some stuff happened I don't want to talk about." Naruto explains as Samui smiles while she continues brushing his hair.

"You have another one already?" Iruka says in shock.

"I know…I didn't think I'd be so popular with girls…oh yeah! I learned this cool new jutsu!" Naruto begins. He then goes onto explaining what he did during his time out of Konoha, except the time he met Kisame and Itachi. As he does Iruka smiles while listening to him, and Samui gives off a warm look to him.

Sasuke walks out from his bedroom, and enters the bathroom. From there he looks at himself in the mirror, and notices the mark on his neck is still there. Of course, this isn't the most important thing on his mind. He's also depressed, mostly about what happened to him recently; he lost to his brother, the very person he has worked so hard to defeat to this very point. Not only is he not interested in him in the slightest; he seems to be after Naruto.

Why? That was never explained during the encounter, but the fact remains he showed interest in the boy and not him, and that's enough to make him go insane. 'Back in the academy, he was never worth paying attention to. Now, he's improved so much, and he was able to defeat someone I couldn't. Where…where does he get that power from!'

Sasuke jumps out the window, and then closes it, and heads up to the top of his building. There he holds his left hand out, and the dark sword appears there. "Our powers should be equal…I have a sword of several forms, just like him. We both have our own bloodlines. The only thing he has is that weird, mysterious power."

Sasuke lifts his sword and begins performing katas. As he does he remembers the things Naruto did: finding the weakness to Gaara's sand dispersion power, performing a summoning technique, becoming immune to the demon's wind power, and stopping him from killing anyone by sealing the demon away. He saw it all with his Sharingan eyes.

The Uchiha trips and falls to the ground during a kata swing, dropping his sword. The sword turns into darkness and seeps into his arm. He grits his teeth in anger and summons the sword again, continuing with his training. 'I have to become stronger! I have to kill Itachi, and maybe defeat-'

"Sasuke!" Speak of the devil, Naruto lands on one of the water tanks on the rooftop. Sasuke turns to face Naruto, his eyes on the ninja while his sword is still out. Naruto sees it, and gasps. 'It's that sword again. I guess it stayed.'

"Naruto, it's good you're here." Sasuke says as he looks to the ninja. He aims his sword up to him. "Fight me."

"What?" At his words, Sasuke jumps up to Naruto and swings his sword at him.

Naruto leaps over his strike, and lands on the roof floor. Sasuke then growls, "I won't ask again! Don't you want to fight me?"

The young Uzumaki grins slowly as he looks up at Sasuke. Inside he could tell something is wrong with the way he's acting, but this is a chance he can't pass up; he can finally fight his rival and friend on even grounds. "Fine."

Sasuke holds his sword up and places his right hand near the point. The sword then transforms into a white and black jagged edged sword, with the hit becoming black horns that extend and cover his hand. "Dark Vacuum Sword!"

A powerful blast of wind blows out from his sword, and hits Naruto. 'The Dark Vacuum sword allows me to fire a powerful burst of air that can paralyze and blow away the victims.' Sasuke then forms the Dark Explosive Sword and dashes at Naruto.

The sky dragon takes the blow and eats the wind he throws at him. He then draws his sword and dashes after Sasuke, forming Gilgamesh. "Sorry Sasuke, but wind doesn't work on me either!"

"Explosion/Gilgamesh!" Both ninjas strike the other with their weapons, Naruto swinging up and Sasuke slamming down. The two weapons create a massive explosion that cracks up the floor they stand. As the smoke clears, Naruto and Sasuke can be seen standing and facing one another, and both of them are scratched up and burnt by the fires of the explosion.

"I'm overjoyed…I've been waiting for the moment, where I can finally beat you." Naruto says as he pushes his sword back. He then makes a horizontal swing at Sasuke, hoping to get in another explosion.

"What are you blabbering about you loser? That's nonsense!" Sasuke jumps up over the swing and kicks his feet into Naruto's face. The ninja rolls back and stands back up, just as the Uchiha does the same.

"I'm not the same loser as before!" Naruto breathes in and releases a Rairyu no Hoko. Sasuke's sword changes into a dark purple sword with a green and black marked, jagged edged blade. This easily cuts through his lightning roar.

'The Dark Sealing Sword Runesave; it cannot cut physical objects, but intangible things like this lightning of his.' "What are you getting so confident about you loser?" Sasuke shouts back as he creates Dark Twin Dragon Blue Crimson. This time the sword looks like it's actually made of dragon skin.

"Where do you get off calling me a loser anymore! We're both genin! We both own the leaf headband! And we both have similar abilities! That makes us equal!" Naruto yells as he forms the Chaos Sword. The lightning released from his twin swords seems to be enough to counter his flame and ice combination.

"That's why I'm saying you're too full of yourself; you think you're my equal!" Sasuke and Naruto clash swords. Fire, ice, and black and white lightning are released from their last strike.

"I've never in my entire life thought of you as my superior, Sasuke-chan!" At Naruto's words Sasuke forms the explosive sword and blasts him away. With him still stunned he dashes towards him with Silfarion, the Dark Sonic Sword.

Naruto counters his speed with Kuro Getsuga, and matches him blow for blow. Sasuke ducks under a swing to his face by Naruto, and swipes his sword upward, having it land on his backside. Twelve explosions go off on Naruto's body as the Dark Explosive Sword can be seen in Sasuke's hands. "Bakuhatsu no Kenjutsu: Juuni Yoku no Bakuenryu! (Explosive Sword Technique: 12 Wings of the Explosive Flame Dragon)"

As the smoke clears up, Naruto can be seen still standing, holding the sword Chromedread. The sword has broken to the hilt, his jacket and most of his pants have been blown off, and he has more wounds on his face. Naruto opens his mouth and breaths out a powerful blast of wind, almost like a hurricane, shouting, "Tenryu no Hoko!"

Sasuke gets blown into the sky by the attack, his clothes and the outer layer of most of his skin wounded and cut by the wind. Naruto forms a cross sign and shouts, "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu."

This summons much more clones than normal. As Sasuke continues to fly up in the air, he forms his own hand seals, the sword disappearing into his arm. "Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu!"

He blows a giant fireball at the Narutos, engulfing the entire battlefield in flames. Sasuke looks deeper into the flames with his Sharingan eyes, and gasps when he sees something strange. There seems to be a noticeable swirl in the flames. The fire is blown away and gives Sasuke a clearer view of what's going on.

Naruto is standing underneath it all with the Rasengan in his right hand. This is indeed the original Rasengan and not just one made by his bloodline power. 'Good thing that clone beside me made this in time.'

'That jutsu…it's the first I've seen it.' Sasuke performs his own hand seals and summons the Chidori. He seems to be too focused on proving himself stronger than Naruto to remember that he can't hurt him. It might stand up to his new attack though. "Chidori!"

'This guy really doesn't learn! Lightning is food to me! I'll just gobble that right up!' Naruto says in his head as he leaps up at Sasuke. Even if he hits him that wouldn't harm him a single bit.

Before Sasuke could strike him, and Naruto could eat it, Kakashi comes up and knocks them both away. Sasuke curses in his head, 'Dammit!'

'Kakashi-sensei! What's he doing here?' – Naruto

The two ninjas slam into the two water tanks, their attacks striking first. Kakashi looks up and stares at the two. After turning from Sasuke his focus goes onto Naruto. 'Naruto…just now he used that technique…No doubt it was the Rasengan…who taught him how to do that?'

Sasuke pulls his hand out from the tank, noticing the large hole he left in it as water pours out from it. He smirks confidently as he deactivates his Sharingan. Kakashi walks over to Sasuke and asks, "What's with you and your superiority complex? With that level of Chidori, it almost seems like you were trying to kill Naruto."

"He would have been fine. After all he's immune to electricity." Sasuke snaps back, the distraught tone in his voice present.

"Where is this immature behavior coming from?" Kakashi questions him. Even though he didn't say it, he could tell exactly where it could be from: meeting Itachi. Naruto looks at his friend, and watches as he leaps over the gate to leap. As he does his eyes go back up, and he gasps when he sees the back of the tank, the one Naruto slammed his attack into, has blown a giant hole in the back.

"What happened to that…Naruto…how strong are you, really…" Sasuke mumbles upon realization of what happened. He punches the side of the building and runs away.

Naruto looks away with sadness, and walks back into Sasuke's room. He sees that Sakura has come in to see her teammate. In her hands is a healthy array of fruit. "Naruto?"

"Sakura…" Naruto says when he sees her.

"It's so good you're back! But where's Sasuke?" Sakura asks him, placing Sasuke's gifts on the bed.

"He…went out. He's been healed by the new Hokage, so it's okay." Naruto says to her. Sakura smiles and sighs, glad that her friend is okay.

"That's good. I guess he'll be fine…would you like to go somewhere? I'd like to here about your trip." Sakura says to him, Sasuke already gone from her mind.

"Sure!" Naruto agrees, and the two exist the Uchiha's home. Naruto wants to make sure Sakura doesn't know about what transpired not too long ago, or risk their friendship being jeopardized.

Meanwhile Sasuke wanders off into the forest of Konoha. As he does he blows up a few trees out of rage. This grabs the attention of some of the animals, and scares them off. "Why? Why is he so strong?"

"What's wrong with you?" A female voice asks him. Sasuke looks up in the trees to see Tenten looking down at him. "Or do you just like blowing things up?"

"It's none of your business. You wouldn't understand." Sasuke says to her, ignoring the girl as she jumps down to him.

"You're frustrated because the one person you thought you would be superior to has surpassed you…You feel threatened by his progress, because it goes against everything you've worked for." She says to him. Sasuke stops in his tracks and turns to look at the girl. She smiles a little while looking at him. "I know how it feels…I've always been better than my own rival, always the stronger of the two, and as of yet she's been able to surpass me. She's made my entire purpose of life useless."

Sasuke sits by a tree, listening to Tenten's words. He then asks, "Who is your rival?"

"She was my best friend…before we became rivals and fought each other. Then an accident occurred, and she died. She fell down the steps and snapped her neck in two." Tenten explains, a sad look in her eyes. "That changed my resolve…I now wish to make sure I become a strong Kunoichi, just like Tsunade-sama!"

"I see…you're not so annoying." He says to her. Sasuke turns to his left arm, and looks back to the mark on his neck. "Do you mind if I train with you?"

"Sure. Let's go." The two ninjas stand up and head further into the forest for more training. Tenten blushes a bit as she realizes she'll spend some private time with the Uchiha. Sasuke though has only his brother and his revenge on mind.

Back in the village part of Konoha, Naruto and Sakura are busy out on a date, as it seems, taking in some dumplings at the local Mitarashi dango shop. Sakura listens to Naruto as he talks about how he brought back Tsunade and even fought against a fire dragon like him.

"You've really gotten stronger, haven't you?" Sakura asks him while chewing on a stick of dango she just finished. She then thinks about Mei and Samui. "Naruto, I've been meaning to ask, am I really worth joining your group of wives? Are you sure you even want more than one girl to live the rest of your life with?"

"You have actual feelings for me, and you were brave enough to confess them to me despite me being engaged. How can I say no?" Naruto says to her. She smiles warm fully and looks up at him.

She removes the stick out from her mouth and looks up at him. "Naruto, can you clear your mouth for a second?"

"Sure." Naruto swallows the dango he's chewing and pulls out the senbon he ate it with. The moment he did Sakura leans in and engulfs his lips with her own. Naruto goes wide-eyed at the moment, since he didn't expect that to happen. She lifts her arms up and places her hands around his cheeks, adding more passion to the kiss.

Without realizing it Naruto grabs her by the hips and lifts her up to him. Sakura parts from him and smiles while looking into his blue eyes. "I can't believe I've waited this long to kiss you."

"Yeah." Naruto says, grinning to the pink haired girl. "Maybe being with four girls isn't so bad, but who will be my fourth wife?"

"Well, there is Hinata. She's right over there." Sakura says while pointing off into the distance, behind a fence. Naruto turns to the spot and sees no one there.

In truth, Hinata really is there, but hid when her cover was blown. 'So he _can_ have more than one wife! It's not too late to confess my feelings! I can still be with him!'

"Hey Hinata! Are you stalking me again?" Naruto asks her. Hinata shrieks and leaps away in shock, not expecting the blond to pop up beside her. She tries her best to calm down, her face growing a powerful blush as she looks at him.

"Uh, yes! I mean, no! No I wasn't!" She screams, failing to calm down.

"Would you like to join us with some dango?" Naruto asks her.

"YES!" She shouts. The shy Hyuga heiress then joins him beside Sakura.

"Are you sure your parents are okay with it?" Naruto asks both kunoichi as he stops by the entrance to the forest. On his two sides are Sakura and Hinata, who both smile while looking at him.

"Who cares what my mom says? I'm a ninja now!" Sakura states as she smiles while looking at Naruto. She then kisses him on the left cheek, and says, "My feelings for you won't change because of my mother's insecurities."

"I agree as well. I care about you as well." Hinata says while smiling to her new boyfriend. She slowly leans in to place a kiss on his right cheek. "Good night, Naruto-kun."

"Goodnight, Sakura, Hinata." Naruto replies, smiling and blushing as he feels their lips touch his flesh.

The two girls smile as they leave, heading home to rest for the next day. Naruto enters the forest and goes to his own home. Inside he finds the house is rather empty, except for a tiny cockroach that has somehow found its way inside. But that would be impossible because of the tracking system, although creatures have the ability to see and sense things humans can't.

He runs to it and stomps on the insect, before heading upstairs. Up there he could hear the sound of running water. 'Is someone here? Oh yeah, Samui lives here now.' "Samui, are you in here?"

"Yeah. I'm about to come out." Her voice calls out. Soon the shower noise begins to fade, until disappearing. Naruto heads inside his personal room and lies down on the bed. After changing into his pjs, complete with frog cap, he begins to fall asleep, his mind going off to dreamland.

- Warning, Lemon

Naruto opens his eyes while moaning, looking down at the women between his legs, Samui and Mei. Samui licks her tongue up the length of Uzumaki's erect penis, and draws a moan from his lips.

"Samui…Mei…" Naruto moans as he looks down at her.

"Oh Naruto, you're so amazing…" Mei speaks in a lustful tone. She brings out her breasts and performs a boob job on his dick. Samui moves to the side and copies her.

"I won't be outdone by you." The blond woman says as she moves her soft breasts along Naruto's length.

"You two…are really…good at this…" Naruto says to them. The two women place their mouths on the tip of his penis and begin to suck while moving their tits. "I can't hold back anymore! Gonna cum!"

- Lemon End

Naruto wakes up to the feeling of a climax going off in his body. He opens his eyes and looks down, seeing his sperm shooting out of his exposed erection. He also sees a hand down where his junk is, and looks behind him to see Samui pressed up against him. She is asleep it seems.

"Samui! What are you doing?" The bewildered boy shouts at the girl. Samui opens her eyes and looks at Naruto, realizing what's going on.

She gasps and sits up, revealing the blue robe she brought here with her. She blushes in embarrassment and pulls back her right hand, which masturbated his penis and got cum over it. "Kya! I'm sorry, Naruto! I must have done it while I was dreaming!"

"You pump dicks while asleep! Why are you here anyway? Your room is down the hall!" Naruto says to the woman. He pulls his boxers and pjs up before she could see his penis.

"Well, I just wanted to sleep beside you for the night. I've just really missed you while you were away. Is that okay?" Samui asks him. As she does she licks her fingers of the sperm on her hands. Naruto blushes as he looks at her, while Samui blushes. "Ah! Why am I licking them?"

'I'm not sure I can survive under these conditions.' Naruto complains in his head. He then goes back to sleep, allowing Samui to sleep behind him again. This time she's facing away from him, so as not to do the same thing. It's only right if he wants it.

Around The Time of The Chunin Exams Finals…

Elsewhere, in the village hidden in the stars, there exists a giant crater. Groups of people are looking down and can see the center of the crater. A person's right hand can be seen slipping out from the rubble. The hand grips onto gravel, and pushes hard onto the ground.

The people could see the body attached to the hand rising up from the rubble of the crater. Before the person could do anything, he falls over to the side and passes out, landing face up. His heart pounds quickly as he tries to move. He opens his eyes as he looks up into the sky. He rubs his face clean of the blood and dirt created from being there. It's most likely a powerful move attacked him.

"He's…still alive…" He mutters, coughing up blood as he talks. Some of the civilians come down to help him. "I have to stop him…before they capture him…" He says as he coughs blood again. He places his left hand on his face and brushes his spiky black and yellow striped hair. His eyes close up as the people help him to his feet.

* * *

5th Sword: Chaos Sword Final Arcana

Weapon: Dual Sword

Description: Twin claymore swords the size of an adult femur. The right sword is dark purple and black and has a crown hanging from the hilt on a chain. The left sword is a reverse, with it being white and bright yellow with a star hanging from the hilt.

Abilities: The swords have the ability to release electricity, the right black and the left white, which can charge up to a hundred thousand watts. They constantly let out an electromagnetic signal, which allows them to be easily controlled by one who can utilize magnetism and electricity if thrown.

Weakness: The twin swords are best for people who are ambidextrous, since it requires a two handed style to be used effectively. Since the swords draw on the user's energy Naruto cannot eat the lightning produced from it.

6th Sword: Phantom Sword Tenchi

Weapon: Excalibur and Bow and Arrow

Description: A white sword with a light blue coloring on the bladed edge and a golden yellow hilt.

Abilities: This sword has the power to cut through anything that cannot normally be, like fire, lightning, wind, even energy. With each cut it gains a charge, and with three it transforms into a silver bow with a blue string. This bow can create arrows made of energy that can be shot to seal away and/or disperse energy/chakra, making it most effective against those who rely on their chakra too much.  
Weaknesses: This sword cannot touch or harm things that a normal sword could touch, like other people and metal. In fact, only the handle and hilt can be touched. Additionally, the sword cannot become the bow without three charges. And while the charges won't disappear if the sword is switched, once all three are used up, the bow reverted to an arrow.


	14. Two Boys Light And Darkness 1

_**Naruto and The Water Princess**_

Disclaimer: Just check back last chapter.

Kenshin: So, did you see that Bugs Bunny cartoon where he gets those hillbillies to beat each other up?

Manabu: Yes. It was kind of funny.

Yusei: Silence! What happens today?

TCM: Well like mentioned last time; Naruto and Sasuke fight against that perverted idiot Nikolai.

Kenshin: Oh yeah. I feel sorry for any woman who has to fight him.

TCM: On a side note I have to go get Pokemon Heartgold today. With it I can start working on The Platinum Adventure's sequel.

Kenshin: EH?! But then who will show the story?

TCM: Manabu will. **leaves**

_**Chapter 14: Two Boys: Light And Darkness

* * *

**_

Dawn breaks out at 6 a.m.; most of Konoha is waking up at this point. Tsunade gets up from her desk, having fallen asleep during the night because of doing work. As she does she sees a robin hanging on the window seal. The bird lands in front of her, and Tsunade spots a scroll hanging off its leg.

"Let's see… '_Dear Hokage, I have an urgent message to give to Naruto. First of all, I would like to apologize for not communicating with you in ever. A few people that want me dead have chased me. I've been tailing them for a while, but after I found them they came after me. I still have no clue to what their leader wants, but I can't do anything to stop him. Because I tried to fight back I was crushed, and am now recuperating in Hoshigakure. I will return to Konoha after my injuries heal, which will take a while since I just woke up from a coma. Naruto, I leave you in the care of Mei and Sarutobi. Sincerely, Manabu Yuuki._' Who is this person?" – Tsunade

In Naruto's home estate, the blond male ninja opens his eyes and slowly begins to force himself awake. He looks back and sees Samui is still there. But instead of facing away from him like he said to her, she's hugging him. He blushes when he realizes that her large breasts are pressing up against his back. 'I wonder how old she is…'

"Mmm, Naruto…" She mumbles, a blush present on her face. Naruto turns around and faces the woman, whose eyes open when she feels movement. "Naruto! Did I do it again?"

"No, it's alright. I'm going out for the day. Will you be taking a mission?" Naruto asks her, smiling so she can do the same.

"I cannot perform ninja duties anymore. Now that I am betrothed I have to stay by your side as a wife, and nothing more. I have given up being a ninja." Samui replies, giving off the same cold stare at him.

"Well that's not fair! You deserve to have the freedom to stay as a ninja!" Naruto says to the girl. Samui blinks after listening to his words, and a smile slowly rises up on his face. He then looks down in shame. "I'm sorry you have to go through this."

"It's okay, Naruto. As long as I'm with a respectable person I don't really mind." She explains. Samui then places a kiss on his left cheek. As Naruto rubs his cheek she says to him, "Now, would you like to go down and eat?"

"Yeah!" Naruto shouts in his goofy way. Without thinking he jumps out of bed and dashes down the steps. Samui smiles as she watches him leave, and tightens her robe around her body so she won't expose her breasts to him anytime soon. That she can wait for until he's earned it.

Downstairs Naruto begins cooking his breakfast for the day. After being around Manabu and his terrible cooking he's had to learn how to cook himself, and his results are much better. Of course, he couldn't compare to Ayame and her cooking, and it's at this point that he wonders why he didn't ask Ayame to become one of his girlfriends.

After fixing a meal consisting of bacon and eggs, over ramen, he gets dressed up in his room and heads out. Samui comes down the steps finally and begins to fix her own meal; she has apparently taken a liking to ramen too.

On his way to Tsunade's office Naruto sees Jonin Izumo and Kotetsu approaching him. Kotetsu stands before Naruto and hands him a letter. He unravels the scroll to look at it, asking, "What's this?"

"It just came for you today. Apparently it's about that guy you were with before." Izumo says to him. The two then leave, allowing Naruto privacy to read his scroll. As his eyes scan the words, they go from shock to happy, to sad, and finally contempt.

"Thank goodness…he's alive. As long as I can visit him, I'll be fine." Naruto says as he closes his eyes. He places the scroll inside his jacket and walks off, heading off to the old lady's office to receive his first mission.

Inside Naruto finds Tsunade sleeping. "This is the Fifth Hokage…What a slacker."

"Wazzat?!" Tsunade picks herself up with a dazed look in her eyes. It seems she has fallen asleep while doing paperwork. Naruto shows the woman the scroll he got.

"Manabu is in Hoshigakure right? I would like to go visit him." Requests Naruto of the Hokage, hoping to go visit his dear mentor.

"Out of the question." She replies, shutting down the boy completely. He looks at her with a confused look on her face, which screams, 'why'. Before he could voice it she says, "You are a genin, not some civilian who can go anywhere they want. Not only that, you're an idiot who brings too much attention to oneself. Even if it's a harmless visit, some enemy ninjas will suspect you."

Naruto makes an annoyed grunt, feeling disgruntled at being shot down like that. "So I can't go…are there any missions I can take?"

"For you…" Tsunade looks at Naruto before searching through her papers. "Well, there is this mission."

"Oh fine…I guess I'll just have to take that…what's it about?" Naruto asks her at the end of his sentence. He wants another mission that would be at least B-rank, but he wouldn't need to since he still owns those winnings from that casino.

"A man from Kusagakure has asked for a Konoha Shinobi to search for a simple book and to burn it. You can handle a simple task like that right?" Tsunade says to the boy. She hands him the paper for the mission, allowing him to read it over.

"But isn't Kusa a ninja village? Why do they need us?" Naruto asks her.

"The person specifically wanted a Konoha shinobi to do this task. This book is in the possession of a ninja leader in Kusa called Belial Nikolai. While this is also just a search and destroy mission, it is also a breaking and entering mission. If someone from Kusa did it and got caught this person would have the power to prosecute them." – Tsunade

'Won't that work the same way if I did it?' Thinks the younger ninja. But since this is the only mission he could take, he would have to just deal with it. "Sure. I can do something like this…can I bring a friend?"

"Fine, but as long as you're going, take Sasuke Uchiha with you." She says. Naruto lifts his eyebrows in confusion, wondering why he has to take Sasuke with him. "Sasuke has been a little anxious ever since his encounter with Itachi. I don't know anything about what happened between you two, but you two seem to possess a bond. This should take his mind off of him."

'Mellow out, huh?' Naruto thinks as his mind goes onto Sasuke. Maybe the blond did seem a little hard on him when they fought. "Okay. Sasuke can come with me."

"Good. I'll also be sending Shikamaru with you." – Tsunade

"What?! That wasn't part of the deal!" Naruto complains to her.

"Yes, but you're not a Chunin. Neither is Sasuke. If I am to send any Genin into another village they have to be with a Chunin." She explains to him.

"Oh fine." Naruto gives up as he leaves her presence, heading off to find Shikamaru and Sasuke.

--

"And that's the situation." Naruto says to Sasuke, explaining his new mission to him. After Naruto left he went to find Sasuke and explains to him what he's doing.

"Why would I go on a mission with you?" Sasuke asks him, turning his back on the guy.

"Because while we're out we can have a real quarrel. One where no one can stop us!" Naruto says to the guy. This grabs the Uchiha's attention. He's been meaning to fight him, and prove how much stronger he is than him. "What do you say?"

"…Fine. We'll see how it goes." Sasuke finally agrees to join Naruto on a mission. They would settle things between them once and for all, in a friendly duel no one will die in of course, right?

Afterwards the ninjas go to meet with Shikamaru. Of course, the guy wasn't really glad to hear what he wants.

"What?" He complains in a whiny voice. "Why do I have to go?"

"We're shorthanded. She says you're the only other Chunin available." Naruto says to him in a logical tone. Sasuke sighs as he hangs outside the door.

"Look, I really can't-

"Shikamaru, who is that?" A feminine voice speaks. A person comes out and to the doorway and approaches them, and they could see it was Shikamaru's mother: Yoshino Nara. Sasuke looks in and sees who's there, blushing a little as he sees his mother.

"It's just a bunch of teammates who will be coming with on a mission." Shikamaru says to his mother.

"Well, don't get killed. I'm not having another kid." She says to him, heading back into the kitchen.

"You know what, I've decided to join in on this mission." Shikamaru tells them. He then leaves out his house and closes the door. "So, we're heading to Kusa right?"

"Yeah." Naruto replies to him.

The trio of ninjas then head to the entrance to Konoha to reach Kusagakure. Before going though Naruto tells them, "Can you guys wait here? I want to bring someone with me."

"Yeah, fine. Just hurry up, dobe." Sasuke says to him. Naruto dashes into town, following a path lead by his nose.

After about five minutes of waiting, Naruto returns with Samui by his side. The two ninjas look at her, and after turning to the blond male Shikamaru asks, "Why are you bringing her along?"

"Samui here has given up the ninja life just to be with me. I want her to at least be able to leave the village once in a while and fight." Naruto says to them. A small smile appears on the normally cold woman's face, realizing Naruto is taking her on a mission with him just so she can be happy.

"If she's not a ninja anymore then we can't really bring her with us and jeopardize her life." Shikamaru states. Of course, that's really just an excuse. He has seen her in battle against Orin, and knows her capabilities. The only reason he's against it is because he didn't want to deal with a woman.

"You're just saying that because your mom has messed up your mind on women." Naruto argues back, being clever enough to tell Shikamaru has gained his celibate status from his mother. Who could blame him?

"Look, we can't bring her with us." – Shikamaru

"If she still has the strength of a ninja then there should be no problem, right? I'll take any punishment for anything that goes wrong." He says to Shikamaru.

The pineapple-head looking ninja looks back at duck butt hair Sasuke, who 'tsks' and turns away. He doesn't really care regardless. Shikamaru sighs and then looks away to the exit, preparing to head out. "Let's just hope she can keep up."

"It's only been a few days. I'm sure I can leave you in my dust." Samui says to him. The four ninjas then head out the village; although, it's actually three ninjas and a retiree.

This place exists west from where Konoha resides, and wouldn't be too long to reach, unlike Wave. Even at top speed, they would take until nightfall to reach the area. In fact by the time they reach Kusa the sun is setting over the horizon, leaving a beautiful orange-purple glow on the area.

The four of them enter the village in conspicuously, searching out their client's home address. They reach the place and come before it. Naruto walks over to the front door, but is stopped by the arms of Shikamaru and Samui. "What are you doing?"

"You don't just enter from the front door. You have to go in through a window or the backdoor. Not only that, but you got to make sure this isn't a trap." Shikamaru tells him. The shadow ninja then walks up to the building, checking the surroundings as he does. By the time he reaches the front door he turns around to face the others. "It's clear."

"See? There was no problem with that! We should have just-AH!" Naruto walks up to the building, but he seems to have missed the Burmese tiger trap in front of him. As he falls a roar let loose inside the trap, and Naruto quickly jumps out. "There was a tiger in there!"

"Oh yeah. There was that…" Shikamaru says, rubbing his head. Sasuke face palms himself and watches Naruto brush himself off.

"How could you not see that coming?" – Sasuke

"I don't have eyes that see chakra! And I'm not a super genius!" Naruto argues back to her.

"I saw it too." Comments Samui, a smile and a chuckle coming out of her mouth.

"Heh. Maybe we should have left you back." Sasuke comments, walking over towards the door. Without realizing it, he falls into a second Burmese tiger trap. Naruto and Samui begin to chuckle. "Not a word, Naruto."

--

"I am so sorry for not warning you about the tiger traps. I've forgotten about that." The homeowner says to them. He is a tall man dressed in a suit. He has the weirdest Hitler mustache on his face. By his side is his wife.

The four ninjas, sort of, are sitting in a fancy living room, in couches. From left to right sit Samui, Naruto, Shikamaru and Sasuke. Naruto is sniffing around, noticing something is wrong, and Shikamaru is searching the place with his eyes. The Chunin then says, "It's no problem. Those two are Genin anyway."

"I see. Anyway, I'm Makoto Mikan. It's nice to meet you." The man says, closing his eyes while smiling to them.

"Your name sounds tasty!" Naruto states, laughing at the fact that he has a point.

"Don't be rude." Samui tells her fiancé. She then looks at Makoto and asks, "Can you explain to us what you wish to do on this mission?"

"That's right…there is only one thing I wish for you to do." Makoto says, beginning his explanation to them. He sighs and looks down at his hands. "There is a book called Daybreak. It is in the possession of our Kusakage Nikolai Belial. I want you to find it and burn it."

"Burn it? You don't want it for yourself?" Sasuke questions. This mission does seem a little weird, mostly because it's too simple. Although it is a B-ranked mission, so it would make sense.

"You guys have a ninja leader, like a kage?" Naruto asks him.

"He's not a real kage, it's just that the name is a formality. He's most likely trying to become recognized as one." Shikamaru explains to the blond ninja. "What can you tell me about this guy? IS there anyway we can sneak in easily?"

"Well, he is looking for a blond maid. He's sort of a self-proclaimed pervert." Makoto tells the ninjas. At that moment everyone turns to Samui, except Naruto.

'I guess it's a good thing we brought her.' Shikamaru says in his head. Sasuke is thinking the same thing.

"I guess I could henge into a sexy girl. Will that work?" Naruto thinks about how he could find the book and sneak out while transformed into a girl. Everyone turns to the guy in shock.

"Or, we could send in that girl." Sasuke tells him. Naruto looks at Samui, realizing she has blond hair, and sighs.

"Okay, I guess that'll work better. So can we go now?" Naruto says anxiously. He seems rather eager in getting through with the mission.

"Just one more thing; what is this book about?" Shikamaru asks him.

"Who cares? Let's just get the job done and we're out of here." Naruto says as he stands up and brushes himself off.

"Naruto, we need more information regarding-" Shikamaru begins, but Naruto is already on his way out the door. "What a troublesome guy."

"Well, we might as well make sure he doesn't kill himself." Sasuke says as he gets out the door. Samui silently follows the two ninjas, leaving Shikamaru alone with the client.

"So, can you tell me some things about the book?" The Chunin asks the normal civilians. Makoto's wife looks away in sadness as Makoto explains it.

--

Samui comes before the Kusakage's building, which is a large mansion that puts Naruto's, Sasuke's and Neji's home to shame. Both the two Konoha ninjas are hiding in the trees as they watch Samui come before the gate. She knocks, saying, "Hello? I'm here for the maid application. Is anyone in there?"

"This will be a synch; all she has to do is become this guy's favorite, and then find the book, burn it, and collect that prize." Naruto whispers to Sasuke silently.

"Won't she be getting the majority of the reward? She's doing all the work." Sasuke asks him. It's true too; all they're doing is watching.

"We'll also be there to save her incase she messes up." – Naruto

Suddenly the ground behind Samui busts open, and a man's head can be seen looking up at Samui. This guy has suave hair colored blood and light brown skin. He giggles and blushes as he looks up Samui's skirt, blood leaking down his nose.

Naruto prepares to jump down and beat him up, but Sasuke stops him. Samui eventually notices his presence and looks down at him. Instantly, his face goes to normal. "Hello. I'm here for-"

"Yeah, I know. You're here for the maid position. Let's see what you got." He then stands up straight, pulling himself out of the ground without any trouble. His clothing is shown to be a dark blue tuxedo complete with fancy shoes. He leers down at the woman, staring at her extremely noticeable cleavage more than anything. His eyes trace down the rest of his body and go up to her face. "You're in."

"Thank you sir." She says to him, giving a bow to him. Nikolai opens the gate to let them in and smiles to her. As she enters the home Nikolai continues to stare at her ass.

'What a sick pervert. He's just as bad as Ero-Sennin!' Naruto states in his head. He then jumps out of the tree and heads over to the mansion. Sasuke follows after him, and the two climb up the side of the building.

"So how long before we bust her out?" Naruto asks his teammate.

"We'll have to wait until she finds it." Sasuke says to the blond. He looks back and sees Shikamaru on top of the roof. "Where'd you come from?"

"Does that matter? How's the situation?" He asks them.

"Samui is in; he took the bait hook, line, and sinker!" Naruto says to him.

"I see…so she's another thief after Nikolai-sama's belongings." A voice says. The trio looks ahead and spots two other ninjas before him. The enemy ninjas are wearing clown masks on their faces, and have black kimonos on. One has long, red hair and the other has spiky mahogany hair.

"Oh crap! Who are they?" Naruto asks, pointing at the two ninjas in front of him.

"I am Oton. This here is Uton." The red one says as he points to his partner. "We are the personal bodyguards of Nikolai Belial-sama. Anyone who enters his home deserves to be dead."

"Let's get 'em!" Naruto says as he dashes towards them, drawing the Twilight Star. His feet charge with electricity, increasing his speed as he attempts to take them out.

Oton throws shuriken at the group. He then forms hand seals, calling out, "Shuriken Kage Bunshin no Jutsu," forcing his shuriken to multiply and kill them.

'No big deal. I'll force magnetism into them and send them away.' Naruto figures as he forms electricity around his hands.

"Katon: Hosenka no Jutsu!" Uton fires an array of fire balls at the shuriken, which become enshrouded and engulfed in flames. Naruto's electricity wouldn't work on them, and he's too close to blow it away with wind.

"Mel Force!" Sasuke shouts, forming his sword and blowing a paralyzing gust of wind to blast away the flames, and the shuriken. Naruto stops to collect the wind around him, and knocks away the rest of them. "Don't just rush in without thinking, dobe!"

"What? So I didn't see that coming!" Naruto shouts back.

"That's a weird weapon. Prepare the genjutsu." Oton says to Uton.

Inside the mansion, Nikolai has finished reading Samui's resume, and has requested she keep her company. She instead makes a Shadow Clone, having learned it from Naruto, and makes her way to the library portion of the building. Inside the library, Samui finds many shelves of books. She begins searching for the one book they need, Daybreak.

'There's something odd here. All of these books are about the villagers, and most of them are of women.' She then takes one book out and looks it over, and notices it has the words Daybreak on it. She lifts her eyebrow in confusion, opening the book to read it over. Samui notices the book has nude and lewd pictures of a woman inside. After placing the book back in its spot she checks the rest, occasionally taking one out to check, and seeing it has a nude woman in it too.

'What's wrong with this guy? All of these books are just pictures of women without clothes, and they're all labeled Daybreak…' Samui traces through the books until she comes across a golden book. She takes it out and looks it over, this one saying Daybreak 109. After opening it she sees Makoto's wife in there. 'Oh my! So this is what he wants…the lewd photos of his wife…but why does he own it?'

"Aha!" Someone shouts. Samui turns around and sees Nikolai sitting on top of a bookcase. He hops down and looks at her in the eye. "I should have known that you were a ninja sent after me. I knew if I let you scurry about you would seek out your target…"

"What happened to my shadow clone?" Samui questions him. If the Shadow clone were dispersed the bunshin's memories would have gone to him. This is something she knows, but Naruto doesn't yet.

"I had a normal bunshin of my own distract it. You might as well go disperse it." Nikolai says to the blond woman. She flicks her fingers, and calls back her bunshin. "But I wonder, why would you come here by yourself? Or do you have friends?"

"My comrades are of no concern. I should be enough to deal with you!" Samui takes out a scroll and summons her odachi. She then swings at him, who blocks with shuriken attached to his fingers like rings. The rings spin on his fingers, causing sparks to fly since they are in contact with her sword. "What jutsu is this?"

"Denjihado no Jutsu (Electric Wave)!" He then aims his hands at her, and causes his shuriken to come off his fingers and scrape her up. The shuriken also draws blood from his fingers. With the blood he stole from her he retrieves one of his shuriken and licks the blood off of it. "I'll tear you apart with my blood!"

"Damn! Ikazuchi no Mai!" Samui blocks the shuriken with her sword charged by her electric chakra, and charges at Nikolai to slice him in half. But when she strikes him, the blade breaks in half. "What?"

"No dice! This tux is made to absorb chakra that would hurt me. Underneath is also a jutsu I activated; Doton: Hagane no Yori no Jutsu!" He then loosens his shirt a bit, exposing his steel flesh to her.

'I'm going to need some help.' Samui drops her sword and tosses a smoke ball to the ground. Using the smoke as a distraction she runs out of the building and heads for the outside.

'She thinks she can run…there's a reason why I've been able to get those pictures of women.' Nikolai places his hands together and forms the tiger hand seal. "Orioke: Pheromone Jutsu!"

Before Samui could leave, she stops in her tracks. Her left hand, which she reached out trying to grab hold of the window, slowly falls back to her side, and she turns around to face Nikolai. The red head grins evilly, his canines exposed in his grin. He then approaches Samui, who is now moving towards him. "Now, where were you going?"

"To your side, Nikolai-sama." Samui replies, walking over to the red haired ninja. She smiles and looks at him with a lustful glare.

"That's right, bitch. You're mine now." He says to her. The two then hear an explosion on top of the roof. He smirks, saying, "So, I guess someone else has decided to crash the party. Let's go greet them."

--

"Rairyu no Hoko!" Naruto fires a blast of condensed electricity at Oton, sending him flying off the building.

Uton stares at the blond ninja, and is about to attack when he finds himself immobile. He looks down and realizes Shikamaru has captured his shadow. Sasuke leaps at him and swings his dark blade at him, shouting, "Explosion!"

The explosion blasts him and knocks him out. Shikamaru's body moves in the same way as he releases the technique. "Well, that went pretty well."

"Now all we need to do is find Samui and get her out with the book." Naruto says as he heads to the door leading up to the roof. Before he does he smells Samui nearby. The woman lands on the rooftop, holding the book Daybreak up. "Samui! You found it!"

"Yes. I found you." She replies. This leaves a confused look on his face. Nikolai stands beside the female ninja and places a hand around her.

"Hey! Get off her!" Naruto shouts to him. He dashes towards the red haired ninja to punch his lights out, but Samui launches a kick to his right cheek and sends him flying off the building. "What the?"

"Don't you ever touch Nikolai-sama!" – Samui

"Naruto!" Shikamaru calls out, running to the spot to save him.

"Go stop him." Nikolai tells Samui. Being under his pheromone spell she immediately obeys him, standing before Shikamaru and preventing him from heading forward.

"How is that woman working with you?" Sasuke questions the Kusa leader.

"Oh it's simple, when you've mastered a genjutsu that places women under a sexually induce trance. It's simple when you've stolen some of their blood." Nikolai explains to them. He then holds his hands up in a shrugging motion. "That's how I capture all my victims and make them strip for me."

"What the heck is this asshole talking about?" – Sasuke

"Nikolai here has a genjutsu that can put women under his control. He then uses them to do any purpose he wants and takes pictures. He then sells them to other people." Shikamaru says to Sasuke, explaining to him what Makoto told him before leaving. Nikolai grins as the genius speaks, having the Uchiha pay attention to his every word. "Makoto told me his wife fell under the genjutsu and had pictures of her taken. He wanted someone else outside of Kusa to get it back to save his wife the embarrassment."

"Oh, so it was Makoto who sent the request…and Konoha ninjas took it. That's enough to set off a war." Nikolai says to them, laughing at the end of his sentence. The fanged ninja then looks at Samui and smiles, saying, "Samui-chan here will be my best one once I get rid of you."

"Set off a war? Yeah right." The Uchiha replies, his Sharingan flaring. "You're not even a real kage. You're just some perverted loser who can't win a woman without using a genjutsu because you're a freak!"

"Watch your mouth, Uchiha! Samui, take care of that kid. I'll deal with this kid." Nikolai says as he looks at Sasuke. He avoids his eyes and pays close attention to his feet, knowing that as a Sharingan user he could put him under a genjutsu.

"You'll deal with nothing!" Naruto's voice can be heard behind Samui, grasping their attention. The girl is shocked by a stunning bolt of lightning, and falls to her knees. She then passes out, shaking from the tazer attack. Everyone could now see Naruto floating in mid air, on top of a garbage can lid. It seems to be lit by electricity.

"What the?! What kind of jutsu is that?!" Nikolai questions, shocked by Naruto being able to stand like that.

The human fuse box looks down at the perverted ninja, and grins as he levitates over him. He then tells everyone, "You like it, huh? I learned I could use electromagnetic powers with my lightning dragon ability to levitate metal objects. This method only needs the same amount of chakra as walking on walls."

"The way I see it you were just too lazy to climb up on foot." Shikamaru says to him. Naruto smiles while looking down at him, and holds his hand out to Nikolai.

"Try a lightning bolt charged up to a thousand volts!" A bolt of lightning shoots out of Naruto's hand, electrifying Nikolai. The metallic ninja falls to his knees from his electric attack.

"Damn you!" Nikolai charges at Naruto in blind rage. The aero ninja lowers himself down in front of Samui, and forms the tiger seal.

'It shames me to do this, but I have no choice.' "Henge no Jutsu!" He transforms himself, becoming enveloped in a poof of smoke.

'There's no transformation he can do that will stop me.' That is what Nikolai thought, before he saw what he became. As the smoke clears, Naruto can be seen to have changed into a girl version of him. Only, this version of Naruto has long hair done up in ponytails, and is completely naked. Nikolai, Sasuke, and Shikamaru take a moment to look at Naruto.

The perverted ninja falls back from a nosebleed, Shikamaru covers his eyes to prevent himself from being affected, and Sasuke looks away with a small nosebleed. Naruto seems affected too, as his face as risen to a full on tomato blush. He then shouts, "Now!"

"Mel Force!" Sasuke holds his sword before him, having it become Mel Force, and blows a blast of wind at Nikolai, paralyzing him for the main attack. He then leaps after Nikolai with his explosive sword active. He strikes and passes by him, setting off 12 different explosions while shouting, "Bakuhatsu no Kenjutsu: Juuni Yoku no Bakuenryu!"

Naruto and Shikamaru shield their eyes as Sasuke finishes off the ninja, as the blond reverts to his normal form. Afterwards Nikolai can be seen falling to the ground, smoking from the many explosions that struck him. Sasuke falls to his knees from being near those explosions. He calls his sword back into his arm, and grasps its shoulder.

"Sasuke, are you okay?" Naruto calls out to his friend. Sasuke looks back at him and smiles.

"No need to worry, dobe. I'm not as hopeless as you." The Uchiha replies, causing Naruto to grin.

"You guys take this to Mikan-san. I'll deal with the rest of his inventory." Naruto says, taking Daybreak and tossing it to Shikamaru. The blond then lifts his fiancé up on his garbage top and flies through the man's windows.

"Let's go." Shikamaru tells the other explosive swordsman. The two then jump down the side of the building, and head off to reach their client's home.

Inside his mansion, Naruto releases Rairyu no Hoko on his entire library stock twice. This causes the place to catch fire, burning away all of his nude pictures of the women in town. Naruto then flies out the window he came through, and heads towards Makoto's place.

"And here it is. You can get rid of it if you like." Shikamaru says to Makoto, handing him the Daybreak with his wife in it.

"Thank you. Thank you so much! We'll give you your payment right away!" The man says, taking the book and handing it to his wife. She takes it into the kitchen and lights a hot plate while he heads up to his room to bring down their payment.

Naruto lands in front of the man's home, with Samui on his top. After dismounting the metal disk-like object he carries Samui and hands her over to Shikamaru. "Shikamaru, can I ask that you look after her for a while?"

"Why? The mission's over." The shadow master replies to his request.

Naruto turns to his rival Sasuke, who smirks while looking at him. "Me and Sasuke are going to finish some unfinished business."

"Huh?" Without explaining it to Shikamaru, Naruto steps on his garbage top and flies off into the forest. Sasuke activates his Sharingan and dashes after him, paying close attention to him and tracking the ninja perfectly.

The two finally reach an open area in the forest, one devoid of any metal object. Naruto looks behind him and spots Sasuke holding up his dark sword. "Here we go, dobe. And this time, no more interruptions."

"I wouldn't have it any other way." Naruto draws the Twilight Star and comes towards Sasuke. The Uchiha performs hand seals and breaths it.

"Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu!" Sasuke fires a giant ball of flame at him.

"Let's see you fair against the Phantom Sword Tenchi!" Naruto swings down and cuts through his fireball. Sasuke leaps out from the flames and holds up his sword's explosive form. "Uh oh."

"Bakuhatsu no Kenjutsu: Bakuenga!" Sasuke swings down at Naruto, who blocks with his diamond sword. The explosion hits him, and shatters his blade to pieces. Naruto falls to the ground with his hilt and garbage top, which flies away from him.

The Uzumaki stands up and holds his sword before him, which slowly begins to reform. Sasuke comes charging at Naruto, his speed increased by the Dark Sonic Sword. "I won't give you the chance!"

Naruto receives many slashes and cuts from his light sword. He then reaches out and zaps the top, forcing it to come back towards him. Sasuke ends his combo with the Dark Twin Dragon Sword, leaving scars that produce fire and ice on his body. Naruto coughs a small amount of blood from his strike, but looks back to see his get away item is ready.

Naruto jumps back on his top and flies away, leaving Sasuke to chase after him. Sasuke swings his left sword and releases a wave of ice towards him. Uzumaki lifts himself up and flies over his attack. "Rairyu no Hoko!"

He fires a condensed blast of lightning at Sasuke, who forms the Dark Sealing Sword. He then cuts through his attack, and then recalls his sword into his arm. The Uchiha next forms hand seals, and holds his left hand down. This creates the Chidori.

"Is he joking? Do you really think that will work on me?!" Naruto gloats with confidence. Both of them know full well that the lightning dragon ninja is immune to electricity.

Sasuke leaps up at Naruto, and brings darkness out of his left arm. He then forms his dark sword, and morphs it into its explosive state. Naruto holds his sword up, reverting it into its sealed state, and sheaths it away. He then flies away and dodges Sasuke's strike.

While in the air Naruto summons a shadow clone and has it form the Rasengan in his right hand. Since it is the real one he flies down at Sasuke, confident that he can defeat him with it. "Rasengan!"

"Bakuhatsu no Kenjutsu: Desperado Bomb!!!" The collision of both of their strikes causes a massive explosion, one that is too strong to be ignored by anyone. It's strong enough to level a giant crater into the middle of the forest.

Naruto and Sasuke fly out from the explosion on opposite sides. The blond ninja holds onto his right shoulder, feeling a pain hitting him there like lightning. He pulls his arm out from the jumpsuit and notices a compound fracture in his arm.

Sasuke walks over to Naruto, still holding his sword up. As he moves closer to him, the curse seal seems to be acting up, and consumes all of his arm and half his face. His Sharingan looks down at Naruto, and his eyes become that of the fully mature one. "Sasuke? You okay?"

"Kukukuku…How's it going, Kyubi-brat?" Sasuke questions the boy. There are a few things weird about how he said it; 1. Sasuke never laughs like that. 2. Sasuke didn't even care to ask why his arm got hurt. 3. How could he know about his inner tenant if he never told him?

"Who are you?! You're not Sasuke!" Naruto says to him. He picks himself up onto his feet, noticing his flying saucer has been destroyed in the explosion.

"Oh, I see…you think I'm still Sasuke." He speaks, glaring into the blond boy's blue eyes. He lifts his sword up and swings down at him. Naruto rolls over to his left and escapes the dark weapon. "I guess I can explain things to you since you're about to die; I am Orochimaru."

"What?" Naruto stands back up to face Sasuke/Orochimaru, holding the Twilight Star with both hands. "That's not right! Jiji killed you with that technique!"

"Yes. There is no mistake he defeated me with that jutsu, the one your father created." Orochimaru tells Naruto, his dark sword transforming into the Dark Sonic Sword. He then dashes at Naruto, swinging the light sword at him. Naruto forms Kuro Getsuga and slowly matches his strikes blow for blow. "Of course he was fool enough to think I wouldn't have planned for this. That's why I gave Sasuke the Decalogue and the Curse Seal of Heaven."

"Decalogue?" Naruto asks the former Sannin that has possessed his friend somehow. He ducks under to avoid a swipe to his head. Orochimaru spins around and roundhouse kicks Naruto in the face and sends him into a tree. Naruto fires a Rairyu no Hoko at him, who blocks with the Sealing Sword.

"That's the name of this sword: Decalogue. I stole this weapon from an organization I went to after leaving another. They've been after me ever since, so I orchestrated the Sound Village to hide in. After my servant Kabuto informed me about a genin team constructed of the only surviving Uchiha of Konoha, I killed the Kazekage and began the war on Konoha." Orochimaru explains to him, dashing over to Naruto and lifting his sword up. "Dark Gravity Sword!"

He swings down at Naruto, who blocks with the Diamond Sword. Even though he has this sword helping him, the weight of the sword has increased to a point where it can cut through the crystal blade. Naruto breaks off his blade and slides away, avoiding the devastatingly heavy sword. He looks at the sword now; it has grown in size to that of a zweinhander, has a silver color on it, black markings on the edges, and chains around the hilt. Naruto then says, "So that sword implanted your personality into Sasuke, and that curse mark gave him your power, didn't it?!"

"Oh no. The sword did nothing to change Sasuke's personality. It only works for those whose hearts are surrounded by darkness. That only shows how much Sasuke is unlike you and your kind, for he has been chosen as the Decalogue's master, in the same way your Twilight Star has chosen you." The snake boy explains to him. "It was the Curse Mark of Heaven that allowed me to implant my power into him, along with my heart."

"…That's creepy, even for you. Now give me back my friend!" Naruto shouts at him, forming Gilgamesh.

"There's no way I will. Thanks to that last explosion I was able to wrest control from him, and now I own the Sharingan! This was easier than I thought! Kuku kuku!" Orochimaru says with a laugh at the end. He then holds his sword up to him, chuckling with pure malice. "It's a shame you won't be able to see all I can do with this power. Jiraiya should have picked a genius to teach instead of a loser."

"Where do you get off calling me a loser?!" Naruto charges at the possessed Uchiha, creating a smoke cloud and stopping in it to hide his presence.

"Who do you think I am? Mel Force!" A gust of wind blows away the smoke, and 12 Narutos can be seen inside. Orochimaru dashes towards the ninja, preparing to cut them down. Through the help of the Sonic Sword the snake prince easily carves through the first 11, and stands on top of the last one's head. "This is proof on how much of a loser you are!"

Orochimaru lifts his sword up to finish him off, but quickly turns around to see Naruto behind him. He cuts him in half, and smirks when both halves turn into smoke. Naruto looks up at him, and reaches out for his sword. The snake prince turns his attention back to Naruto and stomps further on his face. "Any last words, boy?"

"Yeah; I'm going to shove those words right down your throat!" That Naruto then disappears in a poof of smoke, catching the Sannin by surprise. Naruto then comes up behind him and swings Chromedread down, pinning his sword arm to the ground. Since he morphed Chromedread's diamond hide into a hook-like shape he has successfully caught him.

"What is this? Your sword won't keep me down for long!" He snarls at him. Naruto backs away a few meters and holds his hands together. Electricity sparks throughout his entire body as he raises his hands up in the air.

"Prepare for an attack so powerful it will no doubt force you back in Sasuke's head! Rairyu no," Naruto begins as he prepares his Metsuryu Mado attack. A bolt of blue lightning forms, and returns into the palms of his hands. The sound of thunder rings in their ears as the lightning crackles and skates across his epidermis. He then holds his hands out as a bolt of blue lightning shoots out at Orochimaru, as he shouts, "Hotengeki!"

(Lightning Dragon's Heavenward Halberd)

* * *

Kenshin: And that ends chapter 14. Next chapter, we finally meet the man who created the Decalogue, and Orochimaru is finally finished off.

Hao: Will I finally be premiering?

Kenshin: Yeah, yeah, of course ya jerk! You're the son of a bitch behind Sasuke and his problem!

Hao: Oh, go have sex with your ditzy wife!

Hao and Kenshin engage in a ruthless battle, but Hao comes out on top, of Kenshin that is.

TCM: You two stop fighting. I want to enjoy this game without your eternal bitching!


	15. Two Boys Light And Darkness 2

_**Naruto and The Water Princess**_

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Static, Fairy Tail, Rave, and One Piece. I also don't own the pose Naruto does at the end of the chapter. He got that from Go-On Gold.

Kenshin: This is it; Part two of the battle between Orochimaru and Naruto. Also starting with this chapter there will be a big time gap between the normal times where TCM posts this chapter.

Manabu: What?

Ester: He's going to update this less than usual.

Manabu: Oh. So I'm reading the script and it says Hao shows up, and there will be a three to four year time skip.

Yusei: So, how old will he be when he returns?

Manabu: 16-17.

Omake-

Naruto walks over to the door, hearing the doorbell going off. He opens the door and sees a half naked Anko at the door. She asks him seductively, "Hello, Naruto-kun. I'm lost and dirty…can you bathe me and help me find my place?"

"Uh…hold on." Naruto turns around and faces Sakura sitting on a couch. "Um, can I-"

"Sure." She replies. Naruto blinks in confusion and double takes. Could she really be okay with it? "It's okay, you deserve it."

"Alright!" Naruto shouts. He has always wanted to see Anko without clothes on. This would be great for his libido. He turns around to face Anko, but sees a half naked Lee in place. He gasps in shock as he looks at him.

"I'm very, very dirty!" He replies, rubbing against his body.

Naruto opens his eyes and gasps, waking up from a very bad dream. The Uzumaki is sitting in a chair while watching a chess game. He looks to his left and sees Lee looking at him. The bushy haired ninja says, "Hey."

Naruto blinks twice as he looks at him, noticing he is playing against Lee. He stands up and says, "Lee, get out."

"What? But I-

"OUT!!!!" He shouts, pointing out to the door. Since they are in his house he can tell the guy to leave.

* * *

Chapter 15: Two Boys: Light and Darkness 2

"Hotengeki!" Naruto throws the heavenward halberd towards Orochimaru, who is still in possession of Sasuke's body. If this works then he can actually blow him away.

The attack strikes him in the back, sending about a hundred million volts throughout his body. This massive amount of pain forces the Uchiha to activate the Curse Seal, and his body's skin tone becomes dark purple and his hair grows long and spiky. The Diamond Sword snaps off and flies into the air.

"What?!" Naruto shouts in confusion. He leaps up into the air to grab his sword, but couldn't block the Uchiha punching him in the gut. This is strong enough to break his lower ribs and sending him into the ground. 'But how…Rairyu no Hotengeki is my strongest lightning attack!'

"Too bad for you, Naruto-kun…" Orochimaru speaks, looking down at the young boy from where he stands. On his back are two winged appendages that look like hands and on the bone of his nose is a black cross. "You may have the Kyubi in you, but that alone doesn't make you more special than Sasuke."

"Special…Special?!" Naruto repeats as he stabs Chromedread into the ground to pick himself up. Red chakra emerges from his body, but it remains in its original form. "YOU CALL THIS SPECIAL?!!"

Orochimaru swings the explosive form down on him, blowing the weakened Uzumaki away. Naruto holds his ribs in pain, coughing blood and yelling out in pain, his red chakra receding into his body. Orochimaru lifts the Decalogue up in the air, saying, "Good bye, boy."

Orochimaru prepares to slam it down on him, carving the young boy in half. But as he tries to kill him, he realizes he cannot do it. Something is holding him back. The snake prince drops Decalogue, having it fall to his side, and grabs both sides of his head. He then screams, his eyes revealing the Sharingan. Naruto looks up and wonders what is going on.

Inside the body's mind, Sasuke is looking up at Orochimaru, who is hanging in mid air. Impaled in his body are several stakes. Sasuke snarls in anger as he looks up at the snake prince, the Sharingan looming over his figure. Slowly, but surely, Orochimaru dissolves away.

The Uchiha quickly falls to his knees, his hands holding his head in pain. The curse seal of heaven recedes into his body, and he falls face forward to the ground. Sasuke then blacks out, and with him the sword Decalogue goes away.

"Sasuke…" Naruto calls out to his friend to try and reach him. He crawls over to his body and checks his pulse, sighing in relaxation when he realizes that he's alive. "Good. He's okay."

"That's good…I never expected him to use Magen: Kasegui on Orochimaru." A voice says, grasping Naruto's attention. He turns around to face that said that, but sees no one there. He returns his attention to Sasuke, but gasps when he sees his friend is gone.

"Sasuke!" Naruto searches for his friend through the use of his nose. He gets a match when he sees someone holding the Uchiha over his shoulders. "Who are you?!"

"Well, well, well…if it isn't the Yondaime's Legacy." Asks a figure with dark spiky hair, and purple eyes. He has a cape draped over his body to disguise his appearance. Naruto looks up at the man while his teeth expose themselves in accordance to his anger.

"Just who are you talking to? Me, or the fox?" Naruto asks the man. The villain grins as he hears his words. "What do you want with my friend?"

"In total honesty, I do not care about him. He is a being meant to reside in darkness, a path he has chosen because of his revenge. What I need is the demon of nine tails, so I can fulfill my greatest goal." He replies, making Naruto forget his hatred for the moment.

"Why? Who are you?" – Naruto

"I am all that is left, or maybe I'm all there ever was. In preparation for Daijinryu's spectacular return, I will destroy him, and become the greatest living being of all!" He states to the little boy. The man then laughs in a way that shocks Naruto. "And you are the tool that will allow me to kill it."

"Wa-was that a joke? Because I'm not laughing!" Naruto draws his Twilight Star and dashes at his opponent, picking himself up to take him out quickly.

The adult lifts his right hand up, causing Naruto to levitate in the air. He is then slammed back into the ground. Naruto coughs out blood in pain. After his big battle with Sasuke he can't find it in him to fight back. The man holds his right hand out to Naruto, and a stream of dark energy fires at him. It pierces through his eyes and burns into his mind, bringing immense pain and making him scream.

"I won't capture you now. There is something wrong with your body. That red chakra you summoned was irritatingly dark, compared to normal." He says as he steps on top of his head. He then scans the exposed seal on his stomach. "Someone was dumb enough to seal the light portion of your chakra into the seal itself and not you. If I took it from you now, it will only destroy me from the inside."

The man then walks away, leaving Naruto to the ground. He grabs Sasuke, and hoists him up over his right shoulder. With the Uchiha he walks off into the distance, before Shikamaru and Samui could land before them and interrupt them.

"Naruto!" The shadow user says, picking his friend up over his shoulders. "Naruto, where's Sasuke?"

"Sasuke…that…took him…" Naruto mutters, before completely blacking out.

Shikamaru checks his body and notices all the damage on his body. These burns are no doubt from the explosions made by their swords. "We got to get him to a hospital."

"Right." Samui agrees and helps Naruto over her shoulder. Together, the two take the blond and head to the hospital. She looks off behind her after rescanning the battlefield damage they made.

--

A day after Naruto and Sasuke fought, the boy can be found now sleeping inside of a hospital bed. His weapon and clothes are resting on the side of his bed while he wears the hospital garbs. There are bandages wrapped around his body, and even with the Kyubi's chakra helping restore him he needed immediate medical attention.

Beside the ninja is his blond fiancé Samui. She feels she is most responsible about what happened to him, seeing as she wanted to protect him. Whether Sasuke attacked Naruto and ran off, or someone did kidnap him, she let this happen by not being with him. She was careless enough to try and take him out alone, and fell under Nikolai's pheromone genjutsu.

"Naruto, I'm so sorry. This is my fault…I couldn't protect you." She says to herself, feeling guilty the more she thought about it.

"What's your fault?" Naruto asks her, his eyes still closed while looking at her. He seems to have heard what she said while his eyes were still closed.

"Naruto! Are you okay?!" Samui asks him, leaning over him in a fawning motion.

"Yeah…my eyes just hurt a bit. I don't know why though…" He says to her, finding it hard to open his eyes. Samui uses her index and middle fingers to pry open his lids, and she could see they are blue with slits, just like when he digs into the Kyubi's chakra. Naruto cries out in pain, forcing his eyes shut, and sighs. "Don't touch them!"

"I'm sorry!" Samui says, releasing his lids and looking down at him. She then grabs his head and pulls his head up to her breasts, hugging the boy with sincere affections. She blushes a little while looking down at him. "I'm so glad you're okay…"

"Samui…I'd kiss you, but I can't see you." He says to her, smiling while looking up at her. Samui sighs while looking down at him, and places a soft, and wet, kiss on his lips. Her tongue slips through his teeth and she licks up and down the insides of his mouth.

Naruto smiles as he kisses her back, lifting his hands up to hug her during the kiss. The blond woman ends the kiss and stares at her beloved ninja, smiling as she holds him close. While in her grasp he falls into slumber.

Inside His Mind…

_Darkness looms over Naruto's eyes as he looks around. He spots a figure crawling over to him. This being is much larger than him, but it doesn't seem to be directly going for him. Naruto turns around and spots the beast moving towards another person. As it leaves him he could spot 9 tails swinging from behind it, allowing him to identify it as the nine tailed fox. _

_Suddenly, wooden stakes rise up and stab into the fox, but it ignores it and continues pressing forward. The contributor to the wood is someone who looks exactly like the Shodaime. Another person shows up on top of the beast, and all Naruto could see before the explosions went off are his strange, but deadly, Sharingan eyes._

_As the battle commenced, the landscape itself starts changing. Naruto wasn't hurt because he was just a ghost in a memory. He also notices that the battlefield has changed to resemble the Valley of the End. As the battle reaches its climax, Naruto grits his teeth as he notices the demon's eyes have once shown the Sharingan, and then darkness surrounds his body and eyes._

Naruto opens his eyes and looks around, noticing that he isn't in the hospital anymore. He is inside his mind, where the sewers and the Kyubi reside. He looks up and sees the gate in front of him, and the demonic fox grumbles as it notices his presence.

"You again…are you here to thank me for saving your worthless life just now?" The nine tailed fox questions the boy. It glares down at the boy with its blood shot crimson red eyes, staring deep into the eyes of the prison he lives in.

"You saved me? Well, I guess I'm grateful for you saving me…but don't expect it to come out of my mouth again. I'm still mad at you…" Naruto says to it. He then looks deeper into its cage, trying to count the multiple moving tails behind it.

"If it weren't for me you wouldn't be…what are you doing?" It says. It also notices Naruto is looking at its tails.

"Seven, eight, nine…so you do have nine tails. It's weird…some of the dreams I've had made you out to be a ten tailed thing." Naruto says, remembering that dream he had back during the Chunin Exams.

"Ten tails?" – Kyubi

"After my first encounter with that snake bastard, I was knocked unconscious for half a day. During my sleep time I had this one dream…where I was being chased by a demon, that I thought was you. But then I realized it had ten tails behind it and a single weird eye, that almost looked like a Sharingan." Naruto explains to him. He could remember the terror he felt looking at that demon. "I've been having that thing appear in my dreams for the last few days, and then I started having dreams about the rest of those tailed things. I never told anyone because it was just a dream…or is it…"

"…You said it had ten tails, and a single eye right?" The Kyubi asks him. It seems to be really interested in this creature Naruto is talking about.

"Yeah! But that can't be right; I was told there were only nine demons, and you were the strongest of them, right? So, what was I thinking about?" He wonders, looking off to the side to think.

"What was this dream about?" It asks him. Naruto looks up at it in confusion.

"Well, I was running down a hallway, and that thing was chasing me! Then this seal appeared over its neck to bind it, and a light transformed it into you. But the weirdest thing is…it said 'you possess the heart and soul of the man who sealed me away'."

The Kyubi looks down at him with a grin, the kind of grin you could see on the Grinch. 'It's as I suspected…the seal is loosening, and I will finally become free…but it won't be so easy…time is also a factor.'

"What's so funny?" Naruto asks it. He is talking mostly about why he's grinning.

"Your eyes shall be healed soon. Do not fret and keep yourself alive…your real powers will be tested soon." The Kyubi says to the boy. Soon it sends red chakra to him, having it seep through underneath the bars.

"Wait, you didn't answer my question! And I don't want your chakra-" Before he could successfully reply Naruto is surrounded by chakra, and gets sent back to reality. The Kyubi smiles as it watches him leave.

'Soon, brat…soon I will reunite with my brethren, and there will only be one thing next…revenge!'

--

Sasuke opens his eyes, finally reaching consciousness after blacking out. The Uchiha looks up and around, noticing someone in front of him. The person before him is the man who brought him here in the first place. "Huh? Who are you?"

"Nice to see you're awake, Sasuke Uchiha." He says, looking down at the boy. Sasuke looks at his body, and sees he is strapped to a hospital roller; you know, one of those things they put the injured in after taking them from the streets and driving off.

The boy tries to struggle out of his bed, but couldn't call up any chakra. He couldn't summon the sword either. "What are you doing to me?! Where am I?"

"I am Hao D. Yuuki. I have abducted you to help with your training." He says to Sasuke, sitting in mid air. He then floats over in the air, looking down at him.

"Why the hell would I want training from you?! I don't even know-

"I can help you get your revenge on Itachi." Hao says, stopping the ninja from continuing. Sasuke looks up at him and gasps.

"H-How do you know about Itachi?" – Sasuke

"I know everything there is to know about you; your brother slaughtered everyone in your clan and left you alive to kill him. You spent the rest of your years in training to kill him, but by the time you met with him in a town bordering Konoha, you lost horribly and got subjected to the Tsukiyomi. If you stay there in Konoha any longer the next time you meet he'll carve your eyes out." Hao says to him.

Sasuke looks down at himself in shame. It is then that Hao continues with, "By staying there you will only lose sight of your hatred, and will give up on it…that is why Decalogue gave out on you those few times…"

"What? What are you talking about?" Sasuke questions him.

Hao makes a snicker as he looks down at him, exposing his teeth as he does. He then says, "Decalogue is a sword that draws on the hatred and darkness of the user. Weak emotions like fear and love will only hinder its strength, and it won't work for you…in essence, it only loves you for the hate."

"Love? It's just an unanimated weapon! A tool!" – Sasuke

"Just a tool, eh? Decalogue is a sword I designed after copying the process in which my brother created the Twilight Star. I infused the chakra of nine different warriors into a single sword, forging it over and over again for each form, and added my own power for the 10th and final blade." He says, holding his hand out over him. Decalogue takes form and rises up from his arm. "I'm actually glad Orochimaru stole it and gave it to you. It pumps my heart to know someone is actually using my most powerful weapon."

"If it's so powerful why can't you use it?" Sasuke asks him.

Hao grabs Decalogue by the hilt and lifts it over him. The sword releases a dark lightning pulse that shocks his hand, and forces him to drop it. The sword falls on top of Sasuke, without hurting him at all, and disperses into dark fumes that seep into its left arm. "That's what happens. No one has ever shown enough anger or hate to inspire the nine personalities inside."

"Personality? That sword has a mind of its own?" Sasuke asks him, trying once more to free himself.

"Of course. That's the cost of making a sword of ten different forms. Of course, Kenshin didn't know of it when he made the sword, and it's because of that that he's six feet under." Hao then stands on his two feet and holds his other hand over Sasuke. The straps binding him release and allow the Uchiha the freedom to move.

"Big mistake." Sasuke summons his sword and lunges at Hao. The spiky haired ninja cracks his head to the left, and Sasuke is pushed back a bit. He then lifts his right hand and pushes the Uchiha into the air.

"Potensharu no Jutsu: This jutsu has unlocked all of my mind's potential. This has given me advance knowledge in technology, has increased my own powers, and granted me psychic powers. Making a sword like that, one that is superior to the Twilight Star, is something that has required all of my knowledge to create." He lies to him, knowing the true reason behind his power alone. He then motions his hand to move right, and knocks Sasuke across the ground. Sasuke gets back up and glares at him, the triple Sharingan flaring. "You can look at me with those eyes all you want, but you won't be placing a genjutsu on me. Do you really want to die before killing your brother?"

"…I don't get you." Sasuke asks him, looking up at the psychic. "I do want to kill my brother, and that's good for me that you're training me…but what do you get out of it?"

"…Power is everything, and the only thing. This is something I've wanted to prove to my brother. A fool like him who believes love is the best way one can reach their full potential deserves to have reality slammed into his useless face." Hao answers to the young ninja. The spiky haired man throws his left hand back, and a door opens up behind him. Four people can be seen walking out. "So, I will ask you one last time…do you want my help to become stronger or do you want to go back to some losers who think love can make you stronger?"

Sasuke looks back at Hao, and then the four behind him. He smiles before holding his sword up, and converging it into his arm. The ninja walks over to him and smiles. "Fine. Teach me what you know."

--

"Thanks once again for your help." Makoto says to Naruto, Shikamaru and Samui. The three ninjas are standing outside his home, and are receiving their payment for the mission. After Naruto's eyes healed, he woke up and with Samui joined up with Shikamaru.

"It's nothing. That's what we ninjas do." Shikamaru says to him. The three of them then leave, heading towards their village in Konoha.

On the way Naruto stops by a garbage can and steals its top. He then uses it to fly. He seems to still be upset over losing his friend Sasuke. Samui is sitting behind him on the same flying saucer, while Shikamaru is hanging upside down on his feet. Naruto's magnetism is strong enough to hold them up apparently.

"Naruto, I know you want to go find Sasuke, but we have to return to Konoha. Then we will file a search party for Sasuke." The Chunin says to him. "But he's probably over the border…do you remember anything during your fight?"

"…Not really. Only that I was fighting him, and everything went blank back then…I should remember…why can't I though…" Naruto says to himself as he holds his head. He seems to be trying to remember as best as he can.

"If you can't remember, then we'll have to label him as a missing ninja." Shikamaru tells him. Even if it is all a misunderstanding, they can't ignore that fact.

On Naruto's flying disk they make it back to Konoha in a matter of 8 hours, which is half the 16 hours they took to get to Kusa. Naruto allows Shikamaru to jump off when they reach the Hokage tower. There Shikamaru, Samui and Naruto tell Tsunade of what happened during the mission, including their success and Sasuke's fleeting.

"I see…Naruto, can you remember what happened?" The old lady asks the blond male.

"No. All I can remember is up to that part where we created that explosion. I can remember some things…like this laugh, and a white snake…" He says, placing his hand on his head.

'A white snake is Orochimaru's sign…his Curse Mark did stay on his body though…' The woman thinks over as she remembers seeing it on his neck. She sighs, saying, "Naruto, I'm sorry…but he has to be labeled a missing ninja. If we can bring him back then we may be able to redeem his status, but if we find him and he shows resistance we'll have no choice but to deal with him."

"…I see…" Naruto says in response to her words. He sighs and turns around, still flying on his top. "Is that all?"

"Yes. You are dismissed." She says to them. Shikamaru and Samui walk down the halls, while Naruto flies off towards his mansion. 'I didn't know he could do that. Very creative.'

With Naruto he floats across the skies of Konoha, and spots Ichiraku ramen underneath him. He lowers himself down towards them and steps off the top. He then sits in front of the restaurant and smiles at Ayame, hoping to get Sasuke off his mind.

"Hey, would you like your occasional miso-beef combo?" Ayame asks him.

"Nah. I just want soba." Naruto says to her. Ayame gasps when she hears what he said, and walks back into the store slowly. Naruto has only ordered soba twice before; once when he lost in a spar against Sasuke and another time after being beat up by gang-bangers, which was before he turned seven.

"Here you go, Naruto-kun…is something wrong?" Ayame asks him as she hands him the soba. Naruto eats slowly, which is strange compared to the fact that he always eats fast.

"Sasuke is gone…I feel responsible for what happened." He says to him, reframing himself from eating any longer. "It's that snake bastard's fault…if only I was strong enough…"

"You're plenty strong Naruto. Maybe-" Before Ayame could continue, she falls back when she spots a giant frog landing in front of the ramen bar. On top of it is Jiraiya.

"Yo." He says, looking down at the boy.

"Ero-Sennin!" Naruto calls out, pointing his right hand to him. Jiraiya disperses the frog and lands in front of them. The old man then sits in the restaurant beside him. "You're still here?"

"I came to talk to you about an important matter…you are now officially my apprentice, and for the next 3 and a half years I shall be training you one on one." The old man says to him. Naruto blinks in shock while looking at him. "I came to understand that Akatsuki will reframe from chasing you for that amount of time."

"What? Why?" Naruto asks him, standing up from his seat.

"It doesn't matter. I will be training you so you can handle them by yourself, without relying on someone like us 24/7." He replies to him. Naruto smiles a little as he looks at him.

"Well, what are we waiting for?! Let's get going! I want to be strong enough to find Sasuke!" Naruto says to him. He tightens his right fist with anticipation. 'If he really did run off on purpose, then I'll bust his legs and bring him back by force.'

'I see…' "…Forget about Sasuke." Jiraiya says to Naruto. He widens his eyes in surprise.

"What?!" – Naruto

"I've seen many shinobi from time to time…Sasuke is no different than Orochimaru." Naruto grits his teeth as he listens to him. What does he know about his friend!?

"Don't think about bringing him back. That's the sort of thing a fool would do." He says, turning away from the ninja. He even stands up from his seat.

"He may be nothing to you, but HE'S STILL MY FRIEND!" Naruto shouts back.

"Does a friend injure their friend intentionally?!" The blond gasps when he hears what he said. It is true he did try to hurt him, but even still he considers him a friend. Jiraiya sighs in depression as he remembers his former friend Orochimaru, and how long he went through to bring him back. He doesn't want Naruto to face the pain he did. "If you go after him training will be out of the question; ANBU will chase after you."

"Why would they? I'm just a useless fool after all!" Naruto replies, remembering plenty of people around him call him useless. "Is it because of who I am?!"

"That's that. If you follow your own way then that is what will happen; and people stronger than Orochimaru will sweep you away." Jiraiya says to him, lecturing the boy further. "A ninja doesn't need just power and jutsus; they need intelligence. They need the intelligence to make good judgments and decisions. For you to stay a shinobi you must remember this. A fool would be subjected to a world of pain."

Naruto silently looks away after hearing his words. Ayame looks down in shame as she hears his words. She doesn't know much of what's going on, but she could tell Jiraiya has a good point. The blond then answers, "Fine. I understand."

'Good. He'll finally be able to move on with his-

"If that's what it takes to be intelligent, then I'd be happier living ignorant!" Naruto replies, turning around to face Jiraiya. A stern look of confidence can be seen on his face as he glares at Jiraiya. "Sasuke has always been my friend, no matter how badly he's treated me. Even though I've seen the hatred he's shown to me lately he still holds those bonds with me.

"Can you really say that?" Jiraiya questions the boy.

"Naruto…" – Ayame

"Manabu has told me before, that bonds are not something that disappear just because the two things held together by it don't agree on the same things. Even if the friendship formed by the bond is weak, if the bond itself is strong then you'll always be friends…" Naruto's words cause Jiraiya to think a little, giving a look of surprise on his face. The boy then points to him and says, "It's the same for you as well, isn't it? That's why you wanted to save Orochimaru, right? You simply couldn't forget about your friend!"

"That's not true! I've accepted Orochimaru's plunge into chaos." – Jiraiya

"You're wrong! Everyone has something they could never forget," His mind goes off to thinking of all the people in his life. His mind then goes off to his father Minato, and his mother Kushina. "Something…no one could ever sever, within each and everyone of their hearts! If I gave up on Sasuke just because you say so then I will regret it the rest of my life!"

Jiraiya looks away while pausing. He could tell the boy truly means all those words. Despite the sadness he felt while trying to bring his former friend back, he did value their friendship. But can this boy really stop history from repeating itself?

"If you work alone, the best you can do is petty levitation tricks." Jiraiya says, still looking away from him. "Ignorance is said in stone, but only a true moron would do that…Get ready in an hour."

"What?" – Naruto

"I said get ready in an hour. That's how long I'm giving you until we leave, fool." Jiraiya answers him. Naruto smiles a bit as he listens to him. It seems those words have changed his mind about him a bit. The white haired ninja then disappears in a puff of smoke.

"Okay." Naruto says, smiling as he realizes he won the battle. The blond then magnetizes his top and steps on it. He uses it to fly off, heading directly home this time.

There he sees Samui fixing the garden with the help of Hinata and Sakura. The two girls look up and smile, noticing the flying ninja landing before them. Sakura waves to him, saying, "Naruto! You're back!"

"Hey girls. I've got some good news and some bad news." Naruto says to him, grabbing the garbage top.

The four head inside the room, where Naruto begins to tell them the events of two minutes ago. He tells Sakura and Hinata about Sasuke's supposed defection as well as becoming a full on apprentice of the old pervert. He also tells them and Samui about leaving Konoha for 3-4 years to train with him. It's safe to say the three girls are upset over hearing that.

"You're leaving? But you just got back!" Hinata says, her heart erupting in pain as she listens to him.

"Why do you have to leave? It's not like you can't train here with us!" Sakura states.

"We don't want you to leave." Samui tells him.

"I'm sorry, but I need the training. Sorry." Naruto says to them, looking down in sadness. He then pulls his head back up and smiles, quickly getting over his sadness so they can. "Don't worry. I'll come back!"

"It's okay. We'll be fine without you, Naruto-kun." Hinata says, trying to look past her sadness over him leaving.

"Yeah. It's not like our lives were worse off without you." Sakura says to him while smiling.

"We'll miss you, Naruto." Samui says.

"I'm going upstairs to get packed. You guys get ready to meet me at the gate!" Naruto says to them. He places his top on the floor and prepares to head upstairs, but is stopped by the many hands of the three girls in the room. "What? Something wrong?"

Hinata leans forward and places a kiss on his lips, blushing as red as normally without realizing it. The blond boy does as well, his face slightly flushing. She then passes out and falls backwards, leaving Naruto to react quickly and grab her. 'Didn't see that coming.'

Sakura grabs his cheeks and kisses him as well. Naruto's blush rises up and becomes bigger than before. He then smiles a little while looking into her green eyes. 'That either.'

Samui grabs the back of his head and mashes her lips into his, giving a full on make out kiss. Naruto responds and kisses back with all his might, making her moan a little in it. 'Samui really loves tasting my lips doesn't she?'

After that Naruto heads up the steps to grab his gear. He would seal them in his scroll and lighten his load. After doing all this, strapping the Twilight Star around his back, and grabbing a snack from the electric outlet charging his fridge, he heads down the steps. The ninja tightens the forehead protector over his…forehead, and magnetizes his garbage can top. He then hops on it and flies away, noticing his girlfriends have left for the front gate.

Naruto lands in front of the village entrance, and looks around while noticing his three girlfriends are by the gate. Tsunade and Jiraiya are there as well. The blond woman looks back at him, saying, "You ready?"

"You bet." Naruto says to them. The ninja hovers over to the old man as he places the scroll back into his bag. He turns around to face Sakura, Hinata and Samui, telling them, "I'll see you guys later. I'm sorry I couldn't spend enough time with you."

"It's okay. Like we said, we understand." Samui says, speaking on the behalf of the other two. In order, Sakura, Samui and Hinata each place kisses on both of his cheeks. "We'll miss you."

Naruto smiles and nods while looking at them, and with Jiraiya ahead of him they head out of Konoha to their next destination. Tsuande then disappears and heads back to her office. The three girls continue to watch Naruto fly off into the distance.

"Things will surely be quiet without him around." Samui says as she walks away, being the first one to do so.

"Yeah. I want to do my best as well. I need training too." Sakura says as she heads to the Hokage tower. She would request for training from the blond Hokage, and be able to help Naruto in all sorts of ways.

'I must do my best too…for Naruto-kun who always believed in me.' Hinata says in her head. She then walks away, going towards her home estate to train harder.

Outside of Konoha, Naruto and Jiraiya are heading towards their next destination. The blond looks at the old man and asks him, "Ero-sennin, where are we heading to next?"

"Kirigakure. Your woman has to know about the training you'll be going through." The toad sennin says to him.

"How about a race?" Naruto challenges, moving around the old man on his top.

"Like I would agree to such a lame thing…" Jiraiya says this, but as he does he activates his Summoning Technique. This allows him to summon a toad less than the size of a hospital building. "Why not?"

Jiraiya then takes off over his amphibious animal, hopping away and leaving Naruto behind. Naruto soars through the skies while aboard his own transport, increasing his speed to keep up with him. Each leap the giant toad makes leaves a footprint on the ground as they travel towards Kiri.

--

Elsewhere in a dark cave, a group of ninjas covered in black cloaks with red clouds. One of them says, "Fufu, all of us meeting together like this…"

"We haven't done this in 7 years, since Orochimaru left, and before that Hao." Another ninja says. This guy seems to be crouching.

"Hao has gained the Sharingan. Maybe he might experiment with him as well and take his powers." One ninja, who has a large head decoration, tells the rest.

One of the ninjas turn to a normal looking member and says to them, "It's your brother Itachi."

That ninja remains silent while looking at his 'nakama'. Despite his silhouette you could spot the Sharingan in his eyes. One ninja, who is hanging from above, says, "There's no need to be impatient…Hao will die eventually; that why he left. But more importantly, there is four years of preparation we need to go through. If we all work together, then we can achieve it right?"

"Yes, our ambition." One ninja says to the others. His eyes are revealed to look exactly like the one in Naruto's dream. "If we include the Kyubi, everything will be in our hands!"

--

"So, why are you doing this again?" Sasuke questions Hao. He is currently strapped to an operation bed while the psychic is standing above him. He has a chapel in one hand and a black crystal in another.

"This is part of the surgery. If you want to become stronger than Naruto and your brother you need more power, and what better power than to have your opponent's?" Hao tells him, holding the scalpel over his exposed chest. "This crystal holds the DNA of a deceased Uzumaki. By implanting a large amount of its blood into your tenketsu flow and bloodstream, you'll be able to use the same Metsuryu Mado power your rival Naruto has, and he and Itachi won't stand a chance against you, and you won't be afraid of anything."

Sasuke nervously looks at the scalpel in his hands. "So uh…you've done this before, right?"

"Yes. I've used it on Honatsu and Seiryu Shiba Rikka, and they both own dragon slayer abilities…although the damage of the surgery has crippled them for 2 years." Hao injects his chakra into his scalpel, and presses it over the Uchiha's chest.

"What?" And those are the last things Sasuke remembers, before he is subjected to humiliating and unimaginable pain.

Outside the room, in a prison looking setting, four ninjas can be seen sitting in a circle drinking tea. One of them, a male missing ninja from Kiri wearing a light blue kimono, says, "And so it begins. I can remember the pain I went through doing this."

"I know. Hao-sama's surgeries are never good to go through, but the end result is worth it." Another person says. This one is a giant male with a black kimono and a headband from Iwa.

"Ah. Byakko is so sick of drinking tea. Let's just attack the damn village and kidnap him! Byakko hates waiting!" The third person says, smashing the glass onto the table. This ninja has a female figure dressed in a white kimono while wearing the forehead protector from Kusa. "Byakko want to drink blood so much it makes her sick…isn't that right, Suzaku-kun?"

The fourth member of this quartet is silent. He seems to be the only one with the sense to not be brought into their conversation. This ninja has no forehead protector over his head, or on any other part of his body. He has on a crimson and black version of the kimono everyone else is wearing. He silently continues to sip his tea, despite how hot it is.

"Suzaku-kun, is something wrong?" Byakko asks her leader.

"…no…not at all…" He replies after finishing his drink.

3.5 Years Later…

In the village of Konohagakure, a ninja village that is known as the strongest of them all, ninjas and civilians are walking side by side, enjoying a moment of peace. War isn't something that is on their mind at the moment, even after that last one with Orochimaru, Sound and Sand. On the mountains of the Hokage, where there use to be four faces, now exist five.

Coming in from the gates of Konoha is Jiraiya, having aged 3 years older, while looking up at the sky. He sees a flying saucer soaring through the sky, landing on a power line stick. 'He's certainly cheerful today, isn't he?'

"I really missed this village…" Someone says, dismounting off of the saucer to land on the stick. He grabs his saucer and folds it up, showing it's hardly any thicker, or bigger, than tin foil, before placing it up his left sleeve.

This person has spiky blond hair that sticks up like carefully cut grass, held up over his face thanks to a Konoha forehead protector. He has a black sleeveless shirt underneath a long coat tailed coat that reaches to his knees. It is blue in overall color but around the sleeves of his coat he has a black spiral pattern that goes up to his shoulders and stops there. On the inside of his jacket the color of the outfit is orange, retaining his favorite color, and on his left shoulder is a white spiral accessory.

Around his waist is a belt strap holding his metal kunai and shuriken, and holding a katana strapped to the left. He has black pants with an orange coloring where his pockets are, and blue ninja sandals, although his toes cannot be seen. He is also wearing blue gloves with a yellow cuff on the wrists part. On the man's chest is the image of a light blue thunderbolt, encircled by an orange spiral.

This person seems to be smiling while looking down into the city, exposing his shiny white teeth with sharp canines, and looking out to the city with his cerulean blue eyes. On each of his cheeks are three whisper stripes, giving him more of an animal characteristic than normal. This is Naruto Uzumaki, the lightning/wind dragon of Konoha.

Naruto holds his left hand up to his face and turns towards the city. "Break Genkai…" He then switches himself to face the left, and points his right hand index finger out to the city. "Naruto is here!"

* * *

Kenshin: And that ends chapter 15. Next time, Naruto and Sakura spar with Kakashi, and then Gaara gets a little visit from two members of Akatsuki. Also, Haku meets Sasuke.

Yusei: Ooh, that doesn't sound good. Haku may be at his wits end against the fire Uchiha.


	16. Behemoth, Leviathan, Ziz

_**Naruto and The Water Princess**_

Disclaimer: Check back last chapter

Kenshin: This chapter officially begins the part two section of this story. It doesn't mean we're halfway done; it just means we're at the part in Naruto where we're past part 1.

Manabu: I may make a return to the action.

Omake-

"Samui-san, how do you get your breasts to grow so big?" Hinata asks Samui, both them and Sakura inside an onsen. She seems flushed as she looks at the former Kumo ninja's giant boobs. They're just as big as Tsunade's anyway.

"Why do you want to know?" Samui asks her. Sakura seems to be curious about her question as well.

"Well, I know guys…they like big boobs, right? And…" She says, twiddling her index fingers together.

"You want to get Naruto's attention by having breasts like mine right?" Samui concludes. Hinata nods in embarrassment. "Well the thing is, Naruto doesn't really care about the body of a woman. He sees inner beauty, and that's much more important."

"I see…" – Hinata

"If he did like big breasts then he wouldn't have asked Sakura-san and her flat sets over here." Samui tells her, motioning over to the pink haired girl beside her.

"Hey! Just because I'm not as big as Hinata's doesn't mean you can just call me flat!" She says, defending herself.

"I did drink allot of milk and massaged my chest once a week though." Samui states, remembering the things she did in the past. "But just remember Hinata-san, you don't need…Hinata-san?"

Hinata has disappeared from the hot spring, having gone to the bar to purchase some drinks. She tosses half her savings on the counter and purchases tons of bottled milk. Without hesitating she drinks the milk, the image of Naruto in her mind. 'Samui-san, I won't lose to you!'

* * *

_**Chapter 16: The Behemoth, the Leviathan and the Ziz**_

A man with silver hair looks out as he watches Naruto having fun. The teenage ninja chuckles a bit as he looks out into the village, until he notices the extra head on the mountain, the one that use to have four. He gets out of his pose and turns to face it. Apparently they put up Tsunade's face as well, right after his father.

"Look out, Baa-chan! I'll be getting my face carved into that spot too." He says while smiling, tossing out his flying disk down below him. He then leans forward from where he stands, falling down at a quick speed. As he injects electricity into it, his disk expands and becomes bigger, allowing him to plant his feet on top and fly past people.

"Haven't changed at all, have you Naruto?" The same silver haired man questions, appearing underneath the teen's saucer.

Naruto looks below him, and spots Kakashi hanging upside down. "Ah, Kakashi-sensei! When did you get there?"

"I think the question here is when did you get here. How's your trip?" The jonin asks the boy, smiling under his mask. Naruto levitates over a building, allowing Kakashi to jump off. Naruto then sits on his saucer and looks down at him.

"I've been going great! Here's a gift for you!" Naruto digs into his bag and tosses the silver perm jonin a book. It shines in the presence of light, and causes him to gasp.

"No…it can't be…Icha Icha Tactics!" Kakashi states as he looks down at the book. Naruto tosses it to him, and smiles as he takes it.

"This is the latest in the Icha Icha series, after three years. I have no interest in it, but I thought you might like it." Naruto says as Kakashi begins reading the book. He then stands on top of the saucer and flies towards Ichiraku Ramen. "I'll race you to Ichiraku Ramen!"

"Still immature…sure!" Kakashi pockets his book and jumps across rooftops to beat Naruto to the ramen bar.

On the way Naruto flies past a woman with bright pink hair, saying, "Excuse me," He stops and moves back to her when he realizes that it's Sakura. "Ah! Sakura!"

"Naruto! You're back!" She says to him. Naruto lowers himself to her level and hops off his saucer. He smiles as he looks at how much she has grown in the past three and a half years. Sakura blushes a bit as she looks at him. "You've really gotten handsome, Naruto…"

"And you're as pretty as ever." Naruto says to his girlfriend. As her beauty distracts him, Kakashi dashes past him.

"I'm winning, Naruto!" He says before continuing.

"Hey!" Naruto grabs his saucer and uses his own physical movement to chase him. He looks back at Sakura and says, "We'll talk later!"

"Sure…" She says, blushing a little as she watches him go.

Naruto reaches Ichiraku Ramen, but Kakashi is already there, with Jiraiya. The blond trips over and falls flat on his face, muttering, "D'oh!"

"So as promised, I leave Naruto in your care." Jiraiya says to him, looking away while checking the sky. Kakashi takes out Icha Icha Tactics, and his right eye turns to Jiraiya. He seems silent. "Akatsuki has been growing impatient. They will make their attempt soon…I've got to head back out and gather more information."

Naruto picks himself up and walks over to the bar, sitting down beside his two teachers. "This place is still the same. All this nostalgia is riveting."

"Well, it has only been three and a half years. Not much can change in that amount of time…well, the village anyway." Kakashi says, reading the story he got from Naruto. His eyes perk up in interest. "Your peers have all graduated to Chunin."

"…Eh?" – Naruto

"Me, Kiba, Hinata, Shino, Ino, Chouji, Orin, even Tenten and Lee, have all become Chunin. Neji, your friend Haku from Kiri and his teammate Kenta, Kankurou and Temari are all Jonin." Sakura says, having caught up with them to hear what he said. Naruto gives a blank stare as he looks at them, before his jaw drops.

'You got to be kidding me! I'm the only genin! Well, Sasuke is too kind of, but still! It's unfair that I'm the strongest out of all of them and-wait a second!' "What about Gaara!?" – Naruto

"He's now Kazekage-sama." Kakashi tells him.

Naruto gives a paused stare at him. Gaara has reached the equivalent of his dream/goal, and he's still a Genin. It depresses Naruto on how much he shot up compared to him, and yet it makes him feel glad at the same time. Now, there's no way Gaara will be ignored.

"That's good…" Naruto says, bringing a smile to his face. He's obviously upset, but the fact that he's hiding it is noticeable too. "Is anyone else here?"

"Well, Samui is at the mansion and Hinata is out shopping. We can go see them now." Sakura tells him. At that Naruto quickly stands up, and tosses out his saucer.

"Not yet. There's something we have to do first." Kakashi says to Naruto, and then looks at Sakura. He stands up and looks at both of them. "From now on, the two of you are to come with me on team related missions. Starting today, we are all equal Konoha Shinobi."

"…And?" – Sakura/Naruto

"I'm a little interested in how much you've grown." Kakashi holds out two bells. At this point Jiraiya disappears and heads off to the Hokage's office. The two lovers look up at Kakashi with grins as he says, "The rules are the same; if you don't come at me with the intent to kill, and you won't be able to even touch these."

--

Two ninjas with Kiri headbands land on top of a tower. There they can be seen looking out into the village, having finished a mission request. One of them is a male with a scythe on his back while the other is a girl around his age. The silent male turns to his female friend and points out at the village entrance, and spot a group of ninjas coming there; each with forehead protectors scratched off.

"I know Kenta. There's a group of six coming this way." Orin says, drawing many senbon needles as she prepares to head at the entrance of Yugakure.

She and Kenta land in front of the gate, their weapons prepared for combat against the six ninjas. She and Kenta gasp in shock when she sees one of them, the smallest ninja, looks rather familiar. He has spiky black hair that fold back like a duck's butt, a crimson and black kimono similar to the one the other ninja beside him has, and red eyes with three tomoes in them. He holds his left hand at, as dark fumes gather around it.

"I know you…Sasuke Uchiha! What are you doing here?" The girl asks him, preparing her battle stance. Kenta pulls his scythe off of his back and dashes towards Sasuke.

A dark sword forms itself in his left hand, and allows him to block his scythe. Sasuke turns back to the other five, and orders, "Go. Play. Have fun."

"Don't belittle us brat." Honatsu says to him. Himself and the others then jump from behind Sasuke to head further into Yugagakure.

"What exactly are you doing, missing ninja?" Orin jumps on Kenta's back and throws senbon down at Sasuke. The sword transforms into the dark sonic sword, and with it he disappears in a flash. The senbon misses and sticks into the ground, and Kenta falls to his knees. The female Kiri ninja questions, "Where is he?"

"Enryu no Hoko (Infernal Dragon's Roar)," They hear this coming from behind, and turn around to face Sasuke. A stream of dark flames comes from Sasuke's mouth.

'Suiton: Suijinheki no Jutsu!' Kenta drops his scythe for the moment and spits a protective wall of water from his mouth to block the fire. Steam produces from the power of the water attack, but the dark flames continue to burn through the water, until they reach the two ninjas. After a few minutes of being burned, the dark flames disperse, leaving the two on the ground sizzling.

"I've done my job…I'm gone." He says, walking off down the road away from the village. As he walks he notices someone landing beside Orin and Kenta, and summoning a water clone.

This clone grabs his two friends and takes them away. Sasuke turns around and holds Decalogue up, pointing at the person in front of him…Haku. "Sasuke, what are you doing? You've become a rogue ninja, and attacking a peaceful village like this."

"I'm only following orders; bring the Yontoushin (Four War Gods) and Honatsu to the Village Hidden in Hot Water, and destroy it. I never expected you to be here." Sasuke says to him. An explosion goes off as he speaks to him in the village. "I don't know what that guy's planning, but he gave me this power. So I might as well help him out a little."

"I'm taking you back to Konoha!" Haku tells him, holding his hand out. Water drips out from under his clothes and takes the form of an ice chokuto. "With or without your legs."

"Things won't be like when we were 12. You're no match for me now." Sasuke says to him, before dashing towards Haku. "I've always wanted to cut you down though!"

"Bring it!" Haku and Sasuke clash swords with one another, but the Decalogue transforms into Explosion, allowing him to blow the sword, and Haku, up. The ice user slides backwards and crashes into a wall.

"Mel Force!" Sasuke fires a blast of wind from the Dark Vacuum Sword, paralyzing the ninja and keeping him in place. He then leaps over to him, the explosive sword active. "Bakuhatsu no Kenjutsu: Desperado Bomb!"

This swing creates the most powerful explosion Sasuke has made; enough to shake the foundation the entire village is planted on. Sasuke emerges from the smoke unharmed, looking down at the ice shards below him. Behind him appears an ice mirror, and Haku walks out of it. He seems to have suffered the explosion a little. "That one was much stronger than Naruto's."

"…That reminds me…how is the dobe?" The missing ninja asks him.

"None of your business! You want to know, go ask him yourself!" Haku performs several hand seals, and water is produced from the atmosphere. It then rises up and takes the form of a frozen trident.

"Yukigakure no Jutsu!" Haku forces the weather to snow and blow down at them. Haku disappears into it, leaving Sasuke to track him using the Sharingan and only that. Since his dragon abilities are still at work, he isn't cold at all. Instead of being worried, he is smiling, exposing his sharp canines.

'I'll take him out with the Rasengan.' Haku says in his mind, dashing towards Sasuke with his eyes closed. He could pick him up without much trouble thanks to his under Zabuza, and his hidden mist ability. With the power of the Rasengan swirling in his hand, and his eyes safe from his Sharingan, he may have the advantage.

As Haku approaches Sasuke, flames erupt from his body. This quickly melts away the snow, and the Uchiha now stares at the ice user. Fire gathers to his now empty left hand, which closely resembles the Chidori. He then strikes Haku's Rasengan with it, shouting, "Using the same technique as that Zabuza guy isn't going to cut it!"

--

"Now, begin!" Kakashi says, lifting his forehead protector to expose his Sharingan. In front of him are Sakura and Naruto, and they are in their training ground.

Naruto makes haste by drawing his sword, and swinging quickly at Kakashi. In the instance of his swing he transforms his sword into Chromedread and releases ten diamond spears towards the Jonin. Kakashi leaps up into the air and avoids his attacks, tossing several shuriken at him.

The blond hops up to try and avoid them, but more shuriken come at him in the form of the Shuriken Kage Bunshin no Jutsu. Out from behind him appears his melting saucer, which extends and attaches to his feet. Naruto uses it to flies up and avoid his technique, as well as flying behind Kakashi while upside down. He holds the Twilight Star at him, having it transform into a sort of gunblade. On one side of the black blade is gold katakana writing, which says, 'All Delete'.

"Dragon Sword: Omega Arts!" Naruto clicks on the trigger, and fires a ball of condensed fire. Kakashi receives the attack, but explodes into smoke. 'A Shadow Clone? But when did he do that?'

Naruto forces himself right side up, and looks around. He couldn't smell him anywhere. "Wait, he's down there."

"Wait, I got this." Sakura says to Naruto, stopping him from blasting the ground. She lifts her right fist up and punches the ground, busting up the ground and breaking apart the land she stands.

Naruto's jaw drops as she looks at him. 'Holy hell!'

'I guess medical jutsu isn't the only thing Tsunade taught her.' Kakashi thinks as he jumps out from his hiding spot underground. 'By building up the maximum amount of chakra to her fist, and releasing it in an instant is something only someone with precise chakra control can do…since she's originally a genjutsu type, she'll no doubt become better than Godaime Hokage.'

"There you are!" Naruto fires a second blast from his gunblade, but Kakashi disappears. The blast explodes on contact and freezes part of the ground. 'Omega Arts transforms the Twilight Star into a gunblade. On the back of the sword is a switch that allows me to fire a bullet of explosive fire or subzero ice. This uses too much energy though, so it's not something a person with low stamina should do.'

Naruto jumps off his saucer and slips it inside his left sleeve. Sakura smiles as she looks at him, and turns her attention to the jonin ninja. Kakashi closes his right eye as he looks at them, thinking, 'Maybe it's time I took this to the next level.'

That Night…

Kakashi looks behind him while hiding beside a tree. After facing them with several ninjutsu moves, having to deal with their abilities and finding a way around them, he has decided to hide and rest for now. The Sharingan takes too much energy for him; so much he couldn't keep up for the moment.

He has until dawn to keep up with them, and afterwards he can stop. But with their growth over the years being significant he has to be careful. He prepares himself on the look out for how they'll approach him. Suddenly, his nose perks up, and he looks behind him again, seeing Naruto coming at him head on.

'A frontal attack? Surely they know better!' Kakashi says in his head as he prepares for the boy.

"Kakashi-sensei, this is the last joke in the Icha Icha Tactics! The main character is really…" Naruto begins. Kakashi gasps when he realizes he is about to spoil the ending of the book he just got. If he did, then there would be no point in reading it.

'No!' Kakashi clamps his hands over his ears so he doesn't hear him, but his Sharingan could see his lips moving. He closes it, thinking, 'No! I might be able to read his lips!'

Suddenly he hears a jingle noise, forcing the jonin to open both his eyes and look behind him. He sees Sakura holding the bells she stole from behind him, and she smiles with confidence. Naruto chuckles in a cocky way as he looks at him. "A ninja must always look beneath the beneath, eh?"

Kakashi sighs, realizing he has lost the challenge. Afterwards the ninjas head home to rest for the next day. Naruto flies Sakura over to his estate with the help of his saucer. The two reach it in a matter of minutes, easily bypassing other people by flying over them. The two land in front of the mansion, where Sakura gets off first before Naruto quickly dismounts.

"That was pretty clever Naruto, figuring out Kakashi-sensei's weakness while under pressure." She says to him, smiling while looking at him.

"Yeah. I figured he wouldn't want a good book to be ruined." He says to her, chuckling a bit.

Sakura blushes a little as she looks at him, and reaches her hands out to hug him. Her lips press onto his, giving him a soft kiss. Naruto returns the kiss and causes her to blush more as well as moan. He removes himself and looks into her eyes while smiling. She pulls his head back into another kiss and moans further in pleasure.

The two part ways after a few minutes, and Naruto places a hand on Sakura's cheek. "You're getting much better at this…"

"You too," She replies, a frail but warm smile present on her face. She holds onto that same hand for a few seconds before he flies back off into the sky.

"I'll be back in a while!" Naruto says before soaring into the distance. Sakura waves to him as he leaves and enters the building.

Naruto soars through the air while on top of his saucer. He has a lot of things to look at before turning in. After all, now that he's much older he can try things he couldn't. One of those things is sake, and another is flying through his hometown at night.

'This disk I made thanks to Mei's help really worked out. It's much easier than randomly picking up a trashcan or a metal lid. It's also much safer than kunai.' Thinks Naruto as he carelessly soars through the air.

Naruto comes up to Ichiraku Ramen and lands before their booth. He didn't get anything to eat there because of the sudden challenge from Kakashi. Now he can be himself finally and eat his favorite meal.

"Ah, Naruto-kun! Is that you?" Ayame questions as she notices his appearance. "Wow, you look so hot!"

"Oh, don't be like that! I'm the same guy as I've always been." He humbly says to the chef. She blushes a little as she scans his body, but comes back to place when he snaps his fingers in front of her face. "I'd like two bowls of miso beef ramen, and a dash of sake."

"Sake? Aren't you a little too young to be drinking?" Ayame asks him.

"Well, I don't think so. Ninjas should be able to drink as much as they want the moment they gain their license." He replies.

"Okay then, I'll get your order." She says, heading back into the shop. But before she could go in she turns back to him. "Oh yeah, we're trying a little sushi special."

"I hate sushi. I much prefer ramen." Naruto replies to her.

"Ayame-san, I would like a…" Another female voice calls out. That person then pauses when she notices the blond boy in her presence. Naruto could see that this person is actually Hinata. "Na-Na-Naruto-kun?!"

"Ah, Hinata! Nice to see you again!" Naruto says to her, smiling at the girl before him. Warmth grows up to Hinata's cheeks, just like the other times she's around him, and almost passes out. Before she does Naruto reaches out and grabs her. "AH! Not again! I thought you were over this!"

Hinata lies in his arms unconscious as he looms over her. After a few second of sleep she opens her eyes and gaze into his clear blue ones. She blushes heavily as she looks at him. 'I thought I was better at approaching Naruto-kun. I guess not.'

"You look cute when you do that though." Naruto says to her, bringing a smile to her face.

The two eat their fill at Ichiraku before heading back to the Namikaze estate. On the way Naruto tells Hinata of all the things he did while away; fighting random thugs and bandits with one hand tied behind his back, practicing his kenjutsu, and learning advances to his many techniques.

"And then I taught Haku the Rasengan." Naruto says, continuing his 3.5-year tale.

"Wow, and he got it?" – Hinata

"He learned it better than I did." Naruto says, thinking about the time he stayed in Kiri.

_Flashback…_

_"Yeah, I got it! I finally did it!" Naruto shouts, holding a pure, Chakra based, Rasengan in his right hand. "I can now make a Rasengan with one hand, and without a clone or my wind dragon power."_

_"That's impressive Naruto. I think I'm getting this down as well." Haku says to his friend as he explodes the rubber ball with his left hand. Naruto face faults when he sees him doing so well._

_"EH?! It took me two days to get that part down!" Naruto shouts._

_"Well, when my hand started to hurt from adding power to it, I realized that if I brought the power of my chakra to the very limit I would be able to bust it." Haku explains to him. This is practically the same way he did it; only he could just make one hole in it. Haku completely destroyed that thing._

_Out in the distance Jiraiya and Mei watch as Naruto and Haku practice their Rasengan. The old pervert for once is paying attention to, not Mei's giant rack, but Haku and his skill. "That kid really is a genius."_

_"Yeah. It really is no fun teaching a genius, but I'm glad it's someone like him. Haku is perfect for my replacement." The female kage says, knowing the power the ice ninja possesses. It isn't just the fact that he can make pure ice and snow, but that he has more skills and potential than any other ninja his age in the village. He's a genius on pair with Sasuke. "But I bet that's not why you continued to teach Naruto, right?"_

_"Of course not. I trained him for a few reasons, but my favorite is because he is not a genius. Teaching them ain't fun at all…" Jiraiya states, his mind going to Minato. A genius that appears once every few generations, he could do things that put Jiraiya to shame._

_"I guess. Naruto is rather interesting to train, since he comes up with rather cool things to meet ends." – Mei_

_"So, how are you and that Karui chick doing?" Naruto asks his girly friend while he fixes a second Rasengan with one hand._

_"Oh her? Well, it's a little bit strained, since she tends to fight allot. She says she doesn't like me at all, but I'm smarter than that." Haku states, smiling while his Rasengan disperses. "I'll stay with her anyway. I like tough women anyway."_

_"…" Sweat comes down the blond's face as he looks at his friend. "…What?"_

_"I like strong women who can stand up for themselves, like Karui and that lady from the Chunin Exams." – Haku_

_"EH?! You're dating that creepy snake lady too?!" Naruto shouts at him in a questioning voice._

_"I am a bloodline user, and the only one of my kind. Now that Yondaime Mizukage is gone I have been placed under the CRA of Kiri…but with only two girls." Haku explains to his friend. Naruto continues to stare at Haku with a blank look on his face. Haku must really have a lot of guts to show interest in women who love to beat people up. Karui may have a good reason but Anko is just nuts to him._

_Well, Haku can take care of himself; this is the thought Naruto is thinking._

_End Flashback…_

"Haku-san is a good friend, isn't he?" Hinata questions as they fly through the skies. As Naruto told the story he uses the saucer to fly them back home.

"Yeah…" 'Unlike that guy.' Naruto says to her out loud, and then in his head. He is obviously referring to Sasuke, his friend that has left their village to commit his revenge, or so he believes.

Hinata leans onto Naruto closely and hugs him, bringing him out of his thoughts. She sweetly whispers into his ear, "I'm glad you're back, Naruto-kun. Welcome home."

"Hinata…" He whispers to himself, smiling as he embraces the girl into his grasp. She gasps a bit from the sudden pull he gave her, and blushes when she sees the warm feeling coming from her eyes. "Thank you."

"Naruto- Before she could continue, Naruto places a quick kiss on her lips. Her red face grows even bigger than before, to the point where even a rose seems dull in comparison. She then leans up and kisses him back. It takes him off guard and causes him to lose concentration on the saucer's path. He almost crashes in front of the estate. Hinata quickly pulls away, saying, "I'm sorry! We almost crashed!"

"It's alright, I kind of liked the kiss." Naruto says, smiling while looking at Hinata. She gives her smile at him. The two step off the saucer, hand in hand, and it flies up Naruto's left sleeve.

Using his lightning dragon powers he unlocks the door and opens it, letting himself and Hinata in. As they enter, Naruto blinks in shock when he sees Samui stretching in the living room. The blond male smiles and says, "Ah, Samui! I'm back!"

"Naruto?" Samui stops her stretching for the moment to glance at Naruto. Her face grows red when he appears before them. She then dashes towards her fiancé and hugs the boy. He blushes as she pushes him into her chest, which also catches Hinata off guard. "Naruto! I'm so glad you're back! I really missed you!"

'I hope me being away for so long hasn't turned them into perverts.' Naruto asks himself in his head. He takes the time to look at Samui and Hinata, and their tits, comparing them with one another. 'Hinata really did get bigger…Samui hasn't changed at all, which isn't bad…Sakura is a little bigger…wait, who cares about that? It's all about how they use their bodies! …Oh god, I'm starting to think like Ero-sennin.'

"Naruto, you're back!" Sakura states, coming out from the kitchen to meet with them.

"Well, I'm retiring for the night. You girls want to join?" Naruto asks them, smiling as he looks at the girls.

"We'd love to!" Samui and Hinata say at the same time. Sakura chuckles a little as she watches them, and decides to join them. The ninjas, and Samui, head inside the building up to Naruto's room. As he enters his room he gasps, noticing all the pink and purple girly items placed inside.

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY ROOM?!!" Naruto asks the girls, holding his head in shock.

"We decorated it for our own usage. We were going to change back tomorrow because we didn't know when you'd come back." Samui says, grabbing Naruto's pants and pulling them down.

"Hey, what are you doing?" – Naruto

"We're getting you undressed for bed." Sakura says to him, pulling his jacket off. Hinata unties his forehead protector and places it with the rest of his stuff. Before he knew it, Naruto is stripped to his frog boxers. The girls blush as they look at his body, noticing how well toned his body is.

Soon the girls begin to undress as well, exposing their undergarments to the lucky blond teen. Naruto grows a small nosebleed, noticing the colors and types of underwear they're wearing; Hinata has a purplish blue bra with granny panties, Samui has a black lace wonder bra with a thong, and Sakura possesses a salmon bra with lace panties, making her the most normal of them all.

Samui lifts him up, since he fell down from looking at them half naked, and places him on the bed. Hinata and Sakura then lay down beside him, pinky on his right while the shy one is on the left. Samui takes comfort in the middle, hugging her boyfriend, yes it's best to classify him as that to her, as he hugs both the other girls around him.

--

The next day Naruto can be seen flying into town with his metal saucer while his girls follow him on foot, except Sakura who has decided to hang underneath his ride. He has one of the biggest grins he's ever made on his face, probably from waking up to three girls who love you. 'Today is the day me and Sakura go on a mission with Kakashi-sensei.'

He comes before the Hokage Office's window, and hops off to open it. Sakura follows close after him. Tsunade turns around and notices Naruto is behind him, wearing an older outfit of his childhood jumpsuit. The Twilight Star is strapped to his waist.

"Ah, Naruto. Did you enjoy coming back to Konoha?" Tsunade asks him, smiling, as she looks him over.

Naruto retrieves his saucer and shrinks it, slipping the disk up his sleeve afterwards. He and Sakura then walk up to the front of her desk and he asks her, "That's right! And I'm ready to take on missions!"

"We both are…where's Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asks, noticing their teacher hasn't showed up yet.

"I'm right here." Kakashi appears from out of the shadows of the room, reading his book. "Maybe you should get back to training your legs instead of relying on a metal tool for travel."

"Are you saying you can move faster than my magnetism?" – Naruto

"Everyone, let's get back to why we're all here." Tsunade says, interrupting their conversation. She hands them a clipboard, which holds information of an existing mission.

Naruto, Sakura and Kakashi read over the mission files. Afterwards they return it to her, mixed expressions on their faces. Naruto is the first to say, "That's the mission we're doing?"

"Yes. There isn't a problem with it, right?" Tsunade questions, knowing how much he tends to complain about not getting to do cool things.

"…A sentence that tells how stupid this mission is isn't worth being verbalized." Naruto says carefully. An anger mark pops up on the female's face, and she rests her chin on her right knuckles.

"What? What does that mean? Well?" Tsunade replies, looking dead at Naruto.

'You got to be kidding me…his mental state hasn't matured at all…' Kakashi says in his mind, looking at the idiot blond. 'Try not to make her mad…she'll take it out on me.'

"Naruto, don't you realize how terrible she can get when you talk to her like that?!" Sakura whispers to him in his ear.

'At least Jiji was more sensible enough to send me on a mission I was good enough for.' – Naruto

"Well?! Answer me!" Tsunade yells, her temper getting the best of her once again.

Suddenly the doors behind them blow open, and some woman comes in holding a letter. "Godaime-sama!"

"What is it? You're so loud…" She replies, looking at the woman. Naruto, Sakura and Kakashi turn to face the girl, and notice she is dressed like Shizune, only a little.

"We just received a letter from Sunagakure. Godaime Kazekage has been kidnapped by an organization called Akatsuki!" She says. The four of them gasp in shock as they take in the information.

'It's those guys again…' Naruto thinks, his mind remembering the time Itachi and Kisame attacked him. 'They kidnapped Gaara…'

Tsunade sighs and takes back the clipboard, saying, "Team Kakashi, I have a new mission for you. You are to head immediately to Suna, find out the situation and relay the info to Konoha. Afterwards you will follows their orders and back them up."

--

"Byakko's ashamed in you guys." Byakko says to the others, looking at the five ninjas around him.

"What? We destroyed the entire village, just like Hao-sama planned." The black ninja says to the white female.

"Byakko meant if you were going to blow it up you could have left a few people alive so they can pour drinks Genbu." The white tiger says as she scratches her right shoulder.

"Eh, we're not staying any longer. Once Hao-sama comes by and gets what he wants we're out of here." Seiryu tells her. In the distance Honatsu is eating some of the flames they created during their destruction. Suzaku is busy cutting his nails with a kunai, occasionally flicking his head back to keep his silvery cyan hair from getting in the way.

Sasuke is sitting at the ramen joint of the village, eating a bowl of noodles. Seiryu notices him doing this and walks over to him, asking, "Why isn't this place destroyed?"

"I was hungry, so I let them live." Sasuke says to him. He eats the noodles prepared by the chef and his daughter, who are the only ones left alive of their massacre.

"…I guess we can take a break." Seiryu says as he sits down beside Sasuke. His eyes glare into the two chef's eyes. "I will advise you not to poison anything, or else."

"Y-Yes sir…" – Male Chef

"Byakko could go for some Ramen. Neh, Suzaku-kun?" Byakko says to the vermilion sparrow.

"I hate ramen…I'd much prefer sushi." - Suzaku

Elsewhere, Kenta can be seen carrying Haku and Orin over his shoulders, with the help of a water clone he made. They continue down the road until they would reach the sea.

'I can't believe we were beaten, by that guy nonetheless…' He says in his head, because his tongue has been cut out. 'Why did they attack Hot Water?'

--

"Alright, we're off!" Naruto says, stretching his arms out so he can get himself prepared. Him, Sakura and Kakashi are ready to head out to Sunagakure and save Gaara.

"Off we go, Tsunade-shisou." Sakura says to her mentor and Hokage. The old woman is standing by the entrance with them, and Iruka.

"Naruto…" Iruka says, looking at his former blond student. Naruto turns back and looks at him. "Do your best."

"Oh!" He replies. His left arm extends and sets out his flying saucer. Before he could activate it, Jiraiya appears in front of him.

"Yo, heading on a mission?" Jiraiya asks him. Naruto nods in agreement, and activates his disk with a little electricity. He turns his attention to Tsunade and says, "Tsunade, I have bad news. The Sand's Kazekage is-

"I know. These three are on their way there." She replies, pointing to Team Kakashi.

Jiraiya walks up to Tsunade, and whispers, "You do know about the thing between Akatsuki and him right?"

"Yeah." She replies to him.

"Naruto, come here." The old man says to the boy, walking over to him. "Be careful when it comes to those guys."

"Those guys have a thing against me, so I'll just take them out personally!" Naruto states, a confident scowl on his face.

"You may have gotten stronger, but when you feel as though you're about to lose control, get a grip of yourself. You're a hot head who loses their temper too easily." Jiraiya tells the boy. Naruto looks down depressed as he listens to him. Ero-Sennin then whispers in his ear, "Don't use that power."

"…Fine…" He says to him. He then sits down on his saucer and turns himself around.

"Don't worry. I'm sure Naruto will try to do something stupid, so I'll be around to make sure it doesn't happen." Kakashi says to Jiraiya. Naruto then moves forward ahead of Sakura, preparing to leave ahead of them.

"Let's get moving!" Naruto states, as he flies off without them.

"Naruto, wait up!" Sakura says as she dashes towards him to catch up. Kakashi does so as well, sighing at Naruto's impatient behavior.

--

"This is a new type of poison." A ninja from Suna says he looks down at an injured body. Beside him is a second ninja from Suna. "We don't have any type of antidote for it."

"If we don't hurry, we won't last…two to three days…" That person says, who is now revealed to be Baki. "First Gaara, and now Kankuro."

--

Up ahead in the forest, Naruto, Sakura and Kakashi are moving through the trees. The Uzumaki didn't want to waste his strength and chakra jumping from tree branch to tree branch. Sakura notices a girl down in front of them, and she quickly spots it out to be Temari. She calls out, "Temari-san!"

The sister of Gaara looks back at them; surprised they would try to reach her. After landing by her they tell her everything they've been told about, Gaara being kidnapped by Akatsuki for his Ichibi. To say the least, she is saddened and slightly traumatized by it. "I have a bad feeling about this."

"It'll take us three days to reach Suna, maybe half for Naruto who can fly." Kakashi says to her. He then looks at Naruto, who is still aboard his magnetized saucer. She then joins them as they head off to reach Suna.

During the trip Naruto's anger begins to flare up as he thinks about Gaara and Akatsuki; why they're after him, what they might do to him, how they don't really care about people like him. He begins to move faster on his saucer.

"Naruto, I said we need to hurry, but that doesn't mean split up from the-

"It makes me sick!" Naruto shouts, interrupting his sensei's words. "How those guys…Akatsuki…they don't really care about us…they only want the tailed demons inside of us!"

The ninjas behind him remain quiet as he speaks. Even with this revelation, Temari doesn't seem surprised. But most especially strange is Sakura being quiet and okay with it. "He was fighting. Him and I are the same…and yet he was lonelier than me."

As Naruto thinks about him more, he grits his teeth in anger. Any further and he would chip one of his teeth. "He got targeted by Akatsuki…I was targeted by Akatsuki…He always has it rougher than I did!! That's why…that's why I won't stand around asking why! That's why I will definitely save him!!"

'Naruto Uzumaki…' Temari listens to Naruto carefully, hanging onto him word for word. Tears begin to flow in her eyes, and his as well. 'Thank you.'

After two days of travel, the four ninjas reach the village hidden in the sand. Naruto lands and dismounts his saucer, slipping the disk up his sleeve. Behind him are Temari, Sakura and Kakashi. The women are tired from the trip over here.

A Suna ninja guard notices their appearance, and says, "Please, come in! We've been waiting for you!"

The four ninjas then enter the sand village's domain, where they are told of what happened; a member of Akatsuki came by and caused a riot in Suna, drawing the attention of the Kazekage. They engaged in an area battle, where one used explosions while Gaara used sand. Gaara lost when one of the explosives snuck in his sand and knocked him unconscious, and Akatsuki took him away. Kankurou went after them but was poisoned.

Not long after being told the situation, Sakura goes to Kankuro with Temari to treat him. When they reach inside, Kakashi and Naruto are the last to enter. An old lady notices the silver-haired jonin, and gasps. "The White Fang of Konoha!"

He then charges at Kakashi, but Naruto intercepts by summoning a clone to parry her two strikes. He knocks her back with a jab to the stomach by the original's Twilight Star. Everyone turns his or her attention to the three as the clone disappears. Naruto then asks, "What's going on?! Why are you attacking Kakashi-sensei you old bitch!"

"That White Fang of Konoha…I will get revenge on my son's enemy!" She says, dashing towards them again.

"Actually, I'm-

"That's enough." Says an older person, who stands before the two to block them. "Chiyo-Nee-chan., take a good look. There's a resemblance, but he's not the White Fang."

The old lady looks at him carefully, and sweat comes down her face as she realizes her mistake. "No waaaaay! I was just pretending to be stupid! Gya ha ha ha!"

Silence fills the room after she ends her sentence, and Sakura goes on to work on Kankurou. She uses her medical jutsu to extract the poison from his body, or most of it, so he can live for the moment. As Temari relaxes, Sakura tells everyone, "I have to make an antidote for the rest of the poison in his body. Everyone, gather what I say."

'Sakura is really amazing…' Naruto says in his head as he looks at her. The old lady takes a minute to admire the pink haired ninja as she makes a list of items.

"You remind me so much of that Slug lady." Chiyo says as she looks at Sakura.

"Yes, because Tsunade-shisou is my master." She replies with a smile on her face. The two women leave out to get the cure for Kankuro, and Temari joins them.

"Good…after Sakura's done we'll go straight for those Akatsuki punks right?" Naruto asks his sensei.

"Not so fast…is there anyone else who went after Akatsuki?" Kakashi asks the fellow Suna ninja in the room.

"Kankuro went after them alone. No one else joined." Baki tells him.

"So we've lost them…can you bring me to where Kankuro-kun fought? I may be able to track them with a scent or something." He says.

"That won't be necessary." Kankuro tells them, rising up from the bed he's lying on. "There are two enemies; one abducted Gaara, and I fought the other. Even after they split up, I caught a bit of that one's clothing through Karasu's hands."

"Even when you lose you win…that's a Suna ninja for you…" Kakashi states, giving praise to him.

Kankuro plops back on his hospital bed, noticing Naruto is around. 'Naruto Uzumaki…'

--

"Tsunade-sama, I've got urgent news!" Shizune says to her mentor. Tsunade lifts her head up and looks at the young nurse.

"Don't worry. I've sent Team Gai to assist Team Kakashi in Suna." Tsunade replies, looking down at a lottery ticket she has. By connecting it with the news it can be seen as a winner.

"No, it's not that. A group of ninjas from Kiri have fallen by our entrance." She tells her. Tsunade lifts an eyebrow, curious as to whom those people could be. Shizune then continues by telling her, "They are Orin Mizaki, Kenta Orito and Haku Terumi."

"I see…where are they now?" – Tsunade

"They seem to have a fair amount of injuries: mostly burns and gashes. So they have been brought to the hospital." She answers, and the Hokage stands up. Tsunade heads out the door, grabbing her green haori. "Where are you going?"

"Where do you think?" – Tsunade

--

"Here." Sakura hands Kankurou a vial containing medicine. He drinks it down, and can slowly feel his body feeling better. "There. You'll b fine now, but until the paralysis ends please don't move. It's best to get some sleep."

"Good. Now for some action." Naruto says, grabbing his backpack and throwing it over his back.

Kankuro looks down at his hand, noticing how much he's trembling. He can't even get his hands to stop. The man looks up at Naruto, and says, "Naruto Uzumaki…please…save my brother."

"Sure…as the future Hokage, it's only the right thing to do!" Naruto replies, a smile appearing on his face.

* * *

Kenshin: And that ends this chapter. Next time, Kakashi and Naruto fight Deidara and Sakura takes on Sasori with the help of Chiyo, although that won't be shown. Haku also wakes up and tells Tsunade about what happened in Hot Water.

Manabu: We will also be going deeper into Naruto's demon condition when he uses the third tail, and more memories from the fox's past. Also, you will all witness Juuken Gattai, a special technique of the Twilight Star that you will all find impressive.

Yusei: Also, me speaking is an edit for those who think Sasuke and his group attacked Kiri. They didn't; Kenta, Orin, and Haku were simply on a mission in Hot Water and got caught up in the destruction. I don't know how you all thought that when I clearly stated Sasuke going into Yugakure.


	17. The Steps Into Darkness

Omake –

"No way, no how!" 12-year-old Naruto shouts, walking away from Sakura. The two of them are inside a corn festival in Konoha, and she asked if he would take her into the corn maze. He then laughs to himself as he thinks about it, realizing that it's a sort of pun.

"Naruto, stop!" Sakura calls out, hoping to get him to stop.

"Go away! I'm not going into that stupid maze!" – Naruto

"But you're in it!" Naruto opens his eyes and looks around, realizing that he has entered into the corn maze he was trying to avoid.

"D'oh!" He shouts, having his voice resonate throughout the entire village. Whenever they hear something like that, the villagers could tell Naruto did something stupid again.

And so, Naruto is stuck trying to find his way out of the maze, using his own instincts and intelligent; he ended up searching for hours. "You know what, screw this! I'm walking straight through!"

Naruto walks into the cornfields that make up the walls of the maze. But the moment he touches them he receives a powerful electric shock. Naruto falls to the ground in pain, radiating smoke and trying to figure out what happened. He then spots a sigh hanging up that says, 'Electrified for your maize solving pleasure.'

"Dammit!" Naruto shouts, punching the sign out of anger. He then receives another electric shock, and falls to his knees. There he sees a sign at the bottom that reads, 'The sign is also electrified.' Naruto then begins to cry, "Why do things that happen to stupid people keep happening to me!"

_**Chapter 17: The Steps Into Darkness

* * *

**_

The four ninjas head across the sandy plains to find Gaara. Using Kakashi's ninja dogs and Naruto they could track Akatsuki using their scent. With that Akatsuki member's scent they take off in search for it, starting from the place Kankuro last saw them. After half a day of looking, they pick up the scent and find it's somewhere in the river country, which is between Konoha and Suna somewhere. Pakkun also tells Team Gai of this, and they infer to them the information.

But unfortunately, Akatsuki knows of them approaching, and so we'll be taking a look at where they are.

In the cave where Gaara, two Akatsuki ninjas, silhouettes of the rest of them and a giant statue is, a man with a tall head says to the others, "A group of four from Konoha is coming. He seems to be very skilled; Maito Guy."

"He's a Jonin from Konoha who specializes in Taijutsu. It's best not to underestimate him." Itachi's figure says to them.

"Ah, I owe that bizarre weirdo!" Kisame tells them.

The leader looks amongst the ninjas around him, and says, "I'll use that jutsu. Who wants to take them out?"

"I'm going! I got a vendetta against that bastard!" Kisame jumps at the offer, and everyone turns to him.

"Good. Someone with an absurd amount of chakra should be the one to do it." The leader says, as his eyes flash.

Back with Team Gai, a figure rises up from the ground to attack them. This person turns out to be Kisame, somehow, who engages them in battle. With the use of his special Suiton skills he has been able to keep Tenten, Neji and Lee separated from Guy.

Elsewhere, Team Kakashi is on their way to the river country, so they can save Gaara and assist the others. With Naruto on his saucer and showing the most impatience he is in the lead. Sakura catches up with him though, and asks, "Naruto, how long has Akatsuki been chasing you?"

"Can't say really…as far as I've realized, it's been over 3.5 years since I met two members, some shark face with a huge sword and Sasuke's brother." As he says this, Sakura gasps. In her head she's thinking Itachi left Konoha just to return and capture Naruto.

"Ever since their failed attempt they've had to wait." Kakashi adds, bringing more confusion to the young cherry blossom girl.

"But why wait for that long?" – Sakura

"Well, they couldn't take action. After all he was with Jiraiya-sama all the time." Kakashi says as he looks at them.

"I've also learned that it takes a lot of time to separate a biju from a man's body, which may have hampered their plans." Chiyo tells them, jumping over a branch to keep up. "A Biju…the classification of the nine demons made purely of chakra that existed since old times. Each monster has a number of tails that classifies it, like Gaara's one tailed demon inside of him. During the great shinobi war every hidden village attempted to capture these beings…to control such creatures is an impossible. What could Akatsuki be planning?"

As they travel, that same guy who spotted Team Gai witnesses Team Kakashi in the forest. Back in the cave he reports, "Another team from Konoha approaches."

"Very good, Zetsu. Who will be dealing with these guys?" The leader questions as they continue the extraction jutsu.

Team Kakashi, and Chiyo, reach an opening, but before they could continue, they could spot someone in front of him. Naruto gasps when he realizes this person looks familiar, since he owns an Akatsuki cloak and the short black hair on his head. He grits his teeth as he finally picks him out to be Itachi Uchiha…somehow.

"Who's that guy?" Sakura asks, landing beside Naruto, Kakashi and Chiyo.

"Those eyes…" – Chiyo

"Itachi Uchiha, Sasuke's brother." Naruto says, immediately identifying him. Sakura gasps in shock, realizing this is the reason Sasuke's been driven nuts.

"Nice to see you again, Kakashi-san, Naruto-kun." Itachi says, glaring his Sharingan at them. Naruto flinches and places the forehead protector over his eyes. Since the Sharingan possesses the power to place genjutsu on others through the eyes, he finds it best to stay blind to him.

"Everyone, don't look in his eyes! He can cast a genjutsu on you with them!" Kakashi warns everyone. "Try to judge his movements by his feet."

"Gotcha!" – Naruto/Sakura

In Konoha…

Tsunade comes before Haku and his teammates, who are still in the hospital. The ice user is laying in bed, his arms and left leg in a cast. The other two are still unconscious, since Kenta's injuries were worse than he realized and Orin suffered a major concussion. The Hokage asks Haku, "I see you're okay for the moment…can you tell me who was it that attacked you?"

"I guess so…" Haku begins, remembering back then when he fought against Sasuke. "My team had finished a mission in Hot Water and were about to leave, but we got caught in a group attack on the village. There were six ninjas, five males and one female. They were all missing ninjas, and they said they were only following orders."

"I see…anything else?" She asks him. As he looks away, Tsunade could sense sadness in his expression.

"Yes. The one leading the group was Sasuke Uchiha." At his words Tsunade widens her eyes in shock. Has Sasuke really gone traitor? "He seemed like a completely different person than when I last saw him…he even possesses dragon like abilities like Naruto."

"I see…something has to be done…" Tsunade turns away to head back to her office.

"Wait." Tsunade stops in her tracks when Haku calls out to her. "Is…is Naruto here? Or Sakura?"

"No. Kakashi has taken Naruto and Sakura on a mission into Suna." She tells him. She couldn't say that Naruto is going up against Akatsuki, or he might tell the Mizukage. She may not know much about Mei, but from what Naruto has told her that might incur her wrath.

Back To Action…

Kakashi leaps out from the ground to attack Itachi with an uppercut. The Uchiha dodges and throws a punch to him with his right fist. Kakashi dips forward to evade, moving closer into Itachi. He grabs the back of his head with the same hand and stares into his Sharingan eye. Instead of falling into an illusion, he grabs onto him and keeps him from fleeing.

"Of course the Genjutsu didn't work. You're just a clone." Itachi says, still looking into his eyes.

The real Kakashi is digging himself out of the ground. "Naruto, take him and my Shadow Clone out!"

"Juuken Gattai! (Ten Swords Fusion)" Naruto shouts, appearing to the Uchiha's left a few feet away. He is holding the Chaos Sword, both of them, up in the air, and holds them before Itachi. Electricity sparks around them, followed by the swirling energy of fire and ice. In between them you could spot a visualization of the Dragon Sword. "Omega Cannon!"

A large stream of gray electricity is released from the center of the barrels of the gunblade, which is twice as large as Rairyu no Hoko. It strikes both Itachi and the clone, mowing down the ground as well. Everyone watching grows a look of impressiveness on their faces, even Chiyo.

"That was amazing…" Sakura whispers, a slight blush on his face.

'This kid…' – Chiyo

Naruto's sword reverts to normal form, and he stabs it into the ground as he falls to his knees. Electricity sparks a bit around his body, until it disperses. 'Juuken Gattai: Chaos + Dragon = Omega Cannon. It fires a powerful destructive ray of condensed lightning, which is stronger than even my greatest Lightning Dragon power. But each Gattai technique forbids me from using any form for a full 24 hours.'

Kakashi walks over to Itachi's fallen body, but gains a look of surprise when he realizes that it isn't really him. Chiyo sees it and gasps. Kakashi then asks, "Do you know this person."

"Yeah. Yuura. He's a ninja from our village." Chiyo tells them.

"From sand? Was he a double spy?" Sakura asks.

"Was he impersonating Itachi the whole time?" Naruto asks, adding his own thoughts on the whole situation.

"No, he's been working hard as a leader for four years." Chiyo answers, proving that he couldn't have been a spy.

"This level of jutsu is beyond a simple henge…he used Gokakyu, something the Uchiha specialize in." – Kakashi

Elsewhere, Itachi and Kisame, their real bodies, are sitting on top of boulders initiating the jutsu to seal the demon in Gaara away. Kisame says, "It seems they got done in."

"Mine's gone too. I guess 30% of our power isn't enough for them." Itachi adds, both of them still in their position.

Inside the cave, where their silhouettes are, the leader of Akatsuki notices it as well. "The jutsu has been lifted, although I can see they've been stalled. Good job."

"Don't say that so simply. Those sacrifices were my subordinates." The shorter one says, who looks to be one of the only two there.

"Sasori…oh look, we're almost done." The leader says, noticing the energy around Gaara is lessening.

Back with Team Kakashi and Chiyo, Kakashi tells the others, "It seems the real bodies are at their hideout. Their objective was to stall us while gathering info."

'These are the kinds of people after Naruto?' – Sakura

"It is indeed stalling. That can only mean they're extracting the Ichibi from Gaara…maybe to make a new Jinchuuriki?" Chiyo thinks out loud, trying to figure out why they would kidnap Gaara in the first place.

"We have to hurry and save Gaara." Kakashi adds, as they prepare to head off.

'Extract…the biju…' "Um, how is it possible to remove a biju?" Sakura asks them, a hint of fear in her voice. She glances at Naruto once after asking.

"If a sealing jutsu which releases the exact amount of power to match up with the Biju's is used, then it is possible to remove it. But such a thing requires time, and afterwards…the Jinchuuriki," As Chiyo begins to explain everyone starts to grow quiet. She herself begins to pause, finding it hard to say these words. "The Jinchuuriki will surely die."

Sakura gasps when she hears her say those words, her body slowly shaking a bit. Her eyes turn to Naruto and her teeth clamp together. Naruto is silent as well, but shows no reaction whatsoever. She quietly speaks, "D-Die?"

"Before Gaara, there were two other Jinchuuriki of the Shukaku. They each had the Shukaku extracted from them, and that caused their deaths." Chiyo explains to finish her words from earlier. As she listens to him, Sakura's heart beats slowly, and tears gather to her eyes.

"Let's get going. The sooner we leave, the sooner we save Gaara." Naruto says, as he sends out his saucer. By injecting electricity into it, he spreads it out and hops on it.

Sakura continues to cry as she looks up at Naruto, who begins to fly away to where the scent is taking him. Kakashi and Chiyo wordlessly follow him; while Sakura wipes her eyes clean of tears. She then hurries up to join them.

As they leave, back in the cave the Akatsuki members are still extracting the Biju from Gaara's body. The leader turns to Zetsu, telling him, "Go dispose of the bodies used for the Shoten Jutsu."

"Understood." The plant man says.

"Itachi, who are the intruders on your half?" The leader asks the Uchiha.

"From Suna, an advisor named Chiyo." Itachi begins. That brings Sasori to widen his eyes in shock. He recognizes the name belonging to his grandmother. "The other three are a team from Konoha: Kakashi Hatake, Sakura Haruno, and the Kyubi Jinchuuriki Naruto Uzumaki."

"…I see." – Leader

Later that night, Team Kakashi rests up and make camp. Having used up his chakra the most Naruto went to sleep first. Afterwards Sakura and Kakashi joined in and fall asleep. Chiyo remains awake, being the look out for that moment. Naruto seems to be on her mind at the moment, and then Sasori. 3 hours later Team Kakashi wake up, and then set out to find Gaara.

On the way Naruto grits his teeth in anger, thinking about how his life and Gaara's have been. Gaara has been alone, all his life. While it is true Naruto was, he gains people who truly care about him: Manabu, Mei, Iruka, Sakura, Hiruzen, Sakura, Sasuke, Kakashi. But while friends have always surrounded him, Gaara never had a real one, until they met.

Just the thought of it causes a small amount of the Kyubi's chakra to leak out, and cause his eyes and whiskers to change. The electric magnetism around his saucer turns red, and he takes off faster than the others.

Sakura shouts, "Naruto, wait up!"

A silent Chiyo turns to Kakashi, and asks him, "Why is that child so persistent? Gaara isn't someone from his own village, so why does he care so much?"

"Because Naruto has the Kyubi sealed inside of him." Kakashi tells her, causing the old lady to gasp. "To Naruto, he doesn't see Gaara as a ninja from the sand, but as a person who has suffered the same way he has. More than anyone in Suna, Naruto understands Gaara's feelings; since the treatment a Jinchuuriki gets is no different no matter what village they're from.

"That's why he won't let Gaara go…because Gaara is someone who understands his pain." He continues, bringing the old lady to think more about it. "Naruto's dream is to become Hokage. When he heard Gaara had achieved the equivalent of his dream, he was a little disappointed. But at the same time, he was happy for him, and gave him his own blessing from the bottom of his heart.

"Naruto…he has a mysterious power. Even without saying much, he can become friends with anyone." – Kakashi

Speaking of Gaara, the jutsu used on the Kazekage is starting to lessen. It finally finishes, and the energy pulled out of Gaara enters the statue. His body falls to the ground. At that exact moment Team Gai arrives in front of the cave, which is blocked by a giant boulder with a seal on it.

"Gaara is inside this cave." Pakkun says to the group, being perched on Lee's shoulder.

Neji activates the Byakugan and tries to peer inside it, and spots the giant statue inside. "Words can't explain what's inside…we'll have to go in."

Guy charges forward to the boulder to punch it, knowing his strength is enough to smash it to pieces. But even with his massive strength he notices the barrier around it is preventing him from doing so. "What the hell are we to do?"

"That's a five seal." Kakashi's voice calls out. Team Gai turns around behind them to see that Team Kakashi has arrived.

"Well, aren't you late?" Gai comments, looking dead in Kakashi's eyes.

"Naruto-kun! Sakura-san!" Lee says, noticing his two friends.

"Naruto…" – Neji

"Who's that old lady?" Tenten asks, noticing Chiyo before anyone else.

"She's an advisor from Suna." Kakashi answers.

Inside the cave, the leader notices how long it has gotten outside, and chuckles a little. Apparently they've been discovered. "It's time to leave."

"Didn't you say there's another Jinchuuriki out there? Heh, don't think too badly of me Itachi." Sasori says, chuckling under his black mask.

The Uchiha stays silent even as he speaks, as he always does. The leader says, "Sasori, Deidara, I am leaving you two with the task of dealing with our guests. I don't care what you do to them, but capture the Kyubi alive. The rest of you scatter."

"Itachi, you've met this little bastard before. What kind of person is he?" Sasori asks him, but only receives the silent treatment in return.

The leader turns to Itachi and glares at him with his many ring eyes, prompting him to answer. "…At the very start…he'll be the one to shout loudly."

"What? That's all you can say?" Sasori replies.

"Can't be a little more specific?" Deidara asks.

Instead of getting an answer, Itachi's silhouette disappears, leaving them in the dark. As everyone else, except for the leader, disappears, he makes a sign and causes the statue to disappear along with him. The two missing ninjas who were actually there land beside Gaara's lifeless body.

Outside the boulder, Kakashi forces Pakkun away, and explains the seal this barrier has. There are five other seals someplace close by that connect to the one on the boulder. By pulling them all off at the same time they can unlock it. Kakashi then asks Neji to locate them, and with his Byakugan it wasn't difficult at all.

Team Gai separate from the main group to track each individual spot, and at the same time they remove the slip of paper. Kakashi takes the talisman seal off the boulder in simultaneous conjunction with Team Gai. Nanoseconds after taking the seal off, Sakura charges in and punches the boulder.

Her freakishly super human strength easily shatters it to pieces, making it a good thing Kakashi jumped off before she did. With the boulder out of the way, Team Kakashi can clearly see inside the cave. They head inside, and become shocked when the image of Gaara's body being sat on by Deidara comes into view. Chiyo's eyes lay on Sasori, who does the same.

"I wonder…which one of them is the Jinchuuriki…" Deidara questions, looking at the ninjas in front of them.

Naruto grits his fanged teeth in anger as he looks at them. Without noticing it, his demon chakra starts to flare up and makes his eyes red and slit, and his whiskers darker. "You bastards…give Gaara back!"

"…I'm guessing it's him." Sasori says, eying Naruto now.

"Seems like it." – Deidara

"Get the hell off of him!" Naruto shouts. He doesn't want to believe Gaara has been killed. He thinks there's still a chance to save him.

"Why should I? There's no point in handing over a dead body." Deidara says to him. Sakura, Chiyo and Naruto gasp in shock at his words.

Naruto prepares to attack them, but is stopped by Kakashi who stands in his way. "Don't go rushing in without thinking."

"...I'll look after the body. It seems the little fox wants to take back his own." Deidara says to him, smiling confidently back at his shorter master. "Master, I know the rules are one Jinchuuriki per member, but I can handle that one."

"…Don't push your luck, kid." The blond missing ninja stands up from Gaara's body, and approaches a giant bird made of clay.

As they conversed with each other, Naruto holds his hands together, as blue electricity gathers to his fingers and palm. He then spreads it out, forming a bolt of pure lightning. He then throws it, shouting, "Rairyu no Hotengeki!"

The lightning bolt transforms into a Chinese halberd as it soars through the air towards Sasori. A tail, sort of, comes out from behind Sasori and receives the hit, but Sasori himself doesn't feel hurt. 'What the?'

"Deidara, don't try to piss me off." The short freak tells the blond.

"There's nothing wrong with my explosive arts, compared to your little puppet show." Deidara replies. Sasori's tail flings itself at Deidara, who jumps on his airborne bird and takes flight.

'That tail must be made of wood or plastic…no, not plastic…maybe ceramic.' Naruto says in his head. Those are the only things he can think of that could block his lightning. Naruto watches as the bird flies out of the cave, with Gaara's body in its mouth. He sends out his saucer to activate it, and uses the magnetism on the disk to fly after Deidara. "Wait!"

"What an interesting little boy." Deidara comments as he leaves with Naruto after him.

Kakashi heads out the cave to go after Naruto. "Sakura, me and Naruto will deal with the one outside. I would ask for you and Chiyo to handle Sasori, but try not to overdo it until Team Gai returns."

"Got it!" She says, as Kakashi takes off after Naruto.

Kakashi looks up to see Naruto airborne against Deidara. Taking hold of his communicator in his coat collar he says, "Team Gai. Your help is needed here immediately."

"We're a bit busy. The enemy used a jutsu against us." Gai's voice says back. Kakashi curses silently and takes out his Sharingan. He can't hold back in a fight like this.

"Rairyu no Hoko!" Naruto fires a stream of lightning from his mouth, but Deidara flies out of the way. He then sighs, realizing that lightning may not be the better choice here. He takes in a deep breath and fires a tornado from his mouth, shouting, "Tenryu no Hoko!"

The hurricane works in knocking him off balance, but it increases his getaway speed. Naruto curses to himself and chases after him, but stops when he feels something weighing him down a little. He looks underneath to see Kakashi has decided to hang underneath him. "Get us closer to him. I'll get him with the Mangekyo."

"The what?" Naruto doesn't know what that is apparently.

"It's an advance version of the Sharingan, essentially my new eye. Keep up with him and I'll show you." Kakashi says, as his eye begins to change. Naruto continues flying towards Deidara, occasionally shooting lightning at him. "Mangekyo Sharingan!"

The space around Deidara begins to distort, as if something is warping it. The distortion seems to be focusing on his right arm. This act forces the artist to slow down for both his arm and the space around it is beginning to break. Naruto moves closer to him, his electricity growing around his hands.

"I've got him Kakashi-sensei! Rairyu no Hotengeki!" Naruto tells his mentor, forming Hotengeki again. He lifts it up and throws it at Deidara, aiming for his arm.

The attack gives Deidara two hundred million volts of electricity, which is strong enough to blow his arm off. Naruto begins to breathe in and out a lot more due to how strong his attack was, and his saucer begins to slow down a little. He quickly regains his composure and picks up speed after him.

Kakashi holds his left eye, thinking, 'I still can't control the location and size of the barrier limiting the area properly.'

Naruto charges electricity to his feet, and jumps off his saucer towards Deidara. He holds his right hand up, forming a normal Rasengan. He slams it down on the clay bird's head, blowing it off. Deidara jumps off his bird to escape, heading towards a nearby tree. Naruto summons two clones and uses them to grab Gaara's body inside the clay. He uses his electric powers to maneuver Kakashi to a tree safely, as his Mangekyo begins to revert to a normal Sharingan.

The two clones finally pry Gaara free from the head after landing on a tree branch. Tears slowly start forming in their eyes as they notice he's really dead. One Naruto walks away from those two towards the area Deidara landed, and throws a kunai behind him. The demon's chakra begins to leak out. "I'll get you…"

"Yeah, yeah, I'll fight you soon enough." Deidara says as he looks at them. He wouldn't really have to deal with him. After all, the boy himself is no danger, but Kakashi is.

"You've let your guard down." Kakashi says, causing Deidara to lift his eyebrows in shock.

He turns around and sees Naruto coming towards him out of a cloud of smoke. He slams a fist charged by blood red lightning in his face, causing blood to come out his mouth and nose instantly. The red of his arm begins to be covered by electricity, as he falls down towards him. "Rairyu no Naruto Lariat!"

He performs a falling Lariat on Deidara, striking his neck of all places. The impact of their descent busts up the ground, severally damaging Deidara in the process. Even with this though, Naruto continues to wail on the ninja's body, snarling and shouting as his fists keep coming back up bloody. His entire body begins to become surrounded by his demon's chakra, in pure chakra form, even forming a tail.

"Naruto…" Kakashi could see Naruto is losing control over himself.

The last punch brings out clay instead of blood, and exposes Deidara's body as nothing more than a clay clone. When he realizes the ninja must have used Kawarimi with a clay clone, Naruto rears his head up and howls in anger.

Hiding somewhere else, Deidara watches as Naruto slips into his demon form. A little bit of blood can be seen coming down his lips. 'Is that the power of a Jinchuuriki? Huh, well no wonder each hit hurt so damn much.'

The clones grab their stomachs and crouch in pain. The real Naruto snickers malevolently as he looks around, using his nose to sniff out Deidara. Kakashi lands down to where Naruto is. 'It's just as Jiraiya-sama said…'

Naruto turns around and lunges his right hand/claw at Kakashi. Before he could hit him Kakashi places a talisman on his head. Naruto's chakra reverts into his body slowly, and he falls to his knees. "Have you calmed down, Naruto?"

"Yeah…I don't know what came over me." He replies, rubbing the side of his head.

"Naruto!" Sakura shouts from afar. She lands in front of them with Chiyo in her arms.

"Sakura, you and Baa-san are okay…" Naruto says as he looks at her.

"Yeah. We took him out." She says, a smile present on her face. Naruto looks over her body, noticing all the wounds and scars on her.

'I can't believe Sasori-dono was killed by them…oh well. Better jet!' Deidara says in his head as he sneaks off. Since his arm is gone and he has no clay to assist him, it is best that he gets to a safer place. But as he leaves, Team Gai stands in his way.

Tenten throws a kunai at him, but he grabs it with his teeth and jumps off a tree to run away. Deidara reaches his decapitated clay bird and drops the kunai, using his mouth to consume some of the clay.

"Watch out for that guy! He uses explosives and specializes in long ranged combat." Kakashi warns as Deidara eats some of the clay. Naruto dashes towards Deidara, wind encircling his body. The explosive artist finishes his meal, and begins to expand. His body grows bigger and bigger, which is similar to a bag when you blow into it.

"Everyone, get back! He's about to explode!" Neji warns, having seen him grow bigger through the use of his Byakugan.

"Blow up eh?" Wind gathers into Naruto's arms, and he throws the wind at Team Gai. The wind picks up the four ninjas and blows them into the air. Deidara explodes, knocking Naruto back through the strength of the explosion. While Team Gai was safe in the air from the explosion, Naruto gets knocked back to his own team.

"Naruto!" Sakura calls out, shocked to see him do something like that.

After the explosion went off, Naruto picks himself up easily and brushes his clothes of dirt. 'That wasn't as strong as I thought.'

The smoke and flames of the explosion seem to be slipping into a center point, and disappears. Kakashi sighs as he falls to his knees, the Mangekyo Sharingan active. The two Naruto clones with Gaara in their arms land by the group, and place him on the ground. Team Gai land by the group, showing them to be completely unharmed.

"I made it in time." – Kakashi

"What…did you do?" Sakura asks him. Naruto looks back at his sensei.

"I sent him, and the explosion, into another dimension." He explains, closing his Sharingan eye with his forehead protector. "More importantly, is everyone okay?"

"Yeah…I'm use to explosions." Naruto says as he looks at his clones. His sadness returns when he spots Gaara's body.

Later That Afternoon…

Naruto and the group are in a meadow plain, someplace in the land of wind. Sakura is checking over Gaara's body, trying to find any signs of life. She closes her eyes and remains silent, shaking her head no to give an answer. She then stands up and rejoins the others.

"Why…Gaara was…Always Gaara…" Naruto begins as he starts to cry. "To die like this…He was the Kazekage…He didn't just become the Kage…"

"Relax, Naruto Uzumaki…" Chiyo says to him, showing a more mature state compared to him.

"SHUT UP!" Naruto screams, turning to face her. Chiyo looks at him in surprise. "IF YOU BASTARDS HADN'T PUT A MONSTER INTO GAARA, NONE OF THIS SHIT WOULD HAVE EVER HAPPENED! WHAT'S WORSE IS YOU DIDN'T TAKE INTO ACCOUNT HOW GAARA WOULD FEEL! WHAT OF THE BIJU! WHAT OF JINCHUURIKI! YOU JUST MADE UP SOME WORD TO GIVE HIM AN INSULTING NAME!"

Naruto continues to cry even as he speaks, trying to rub his eyes clean of tears. Sakura and the rest of the younger ninjas watch him in sympathy. 'Naruto…'

"I couldn't save Sasuke…I couldn't save Gaara…everyone was right; I am useless!" Naruto finishes. All those years of training, all to become a stronger person, and nothing has changed. He still isn't strong enough to make a difference.

Chiyo walks over to Gaara's body, and places her hands on top of his chest. She injects a bright green energy into his body. Sakura, Gai and Kakashi all recognize that jutsu for what it is, and she shouts, "Chiyo-sama, that jutsu!"

"What are you doing?" Naruto asks, looking at the old woman.

"She's going to bring Gaara back…by using her own health." Sakura explains, and a smile slowly grows on his face. But at the same time he frowns when he realizes what she said afterwards.

…

"Enryu no Kaen Hosha!" Sasuke fires a stream of fire from his fingers, which blasts Seiryu and knocks him to the ground. Next to him are the three other ninjas he traveled with earlier, except for Honatsu.

"Well done…" Hao says the Uchiha, clapping his hands while walking over to him. "To think you can now defeat the Yontoushin now."

Sasuke turns back to look at his current mentor, while his Sharingan flares. The scientist smirks while looking down at him. He hands him a bag of pills and walks off. 'Chakra pills.'

"Keep training with them for another hour. I'm taking a nap." Hao tells him, heading for his own quarters. Sasuke watches as he leaves, taking a pill from the bag.

Inside Hao's room he lies down on his bed. On the left of his bed is a giant scroll. On his right is a nightstand, where a picture frame stands. In the frame is a picture that has a younger looking him, someone who looks exactly like him, and a woman with purple hair just like Hinata's. He takes a look at the picture, and sighs, before falling asleep.

Minutes later the door to his room creaks open, and a red snake slithers inside the room. It sneaks up onto Hao, opening its mouth to expose its fangs. Hao opens his eyes and smacks the snake away, saying, "Didn't I tell you to go back to training, Sasuke?"

The snake flies away to the door, and explodes into smoke. Sasuke appears emerging from the smoke with an emotionless scowl. "I'm here to kill you."

"For what reason will you be doing that for, Sasuke-chan? Are you unhappy with all I've taught you?" Hao questions him in a fake happy voice.

"Cut the bullshit! You want my Sharingan, don't you?" Sasuke states. He summons Decalogue to his left hand and glares at him. Hao remains quiet as he listens to him. "You kill other ninjas and harvest their blood and Kekkei Genkai, using them to implant into others. By doing that you can make anyone powerful enough to handle anyone, and I'm sure you want my bloodline to become a part of your collection; That's the only reason you wanted me, right?"

Hao remains silent as he looks at the ground, the room being too dark to see his expression. The mad scientist slowly grins in the darkness of that room, and looks up to stare at Sasuke. "You're right about one thing."

"One thing?" – Sasuke

"I wanted the collect and harvest the power of every bloodline imaginable, and use their powers to create the strongest ninja. But such a thing is impossible…eventually their true DNA begins to reject the one I implanted, unless they continue to take Jibaku Pills every three months." Hao confesses.

"Jibaku Pills?" Sasuke looks at the bag of pills he has around his waist. 'So that's why he makes me take them all those times?'

"Eventually I'll run out, and their powers will die…but I guess I can be honest with you, Sasuke-chan." He continues, bringing an angry scowl over Sasuke's face. "I did not take you under my wing and give you those powers just so I can steal your powers. I don't even care about your revenge against Itachi.

"I wanted someone strong enough to immobilize Naruto Uzumaki." At the thought of Naruto Sasuke widens his eyes in surprise.

"Why do you want him?" – Sasuke

"Young Naruto-kun is a demon container of a powerful Biju, and that monster has the power I need to become the greatest being of all…but someone was smart enough to seal half the demon's chakra into the seal itself, leaving it inaccessible to the boy and myself. The only way I can control that power is if he is possessed by the demon…" Hao turns to his giant scroll, and smiles deviously as he returns his attention to Sasuke. "And I steal his chakra."

"Where does that leave me!" Sasuke questions him, charging at Hao with Explosion active. "Why should I help you anyway?"

"Because, the gene should be taking affect by now." Hao says to him, holding his right hand to him.

Suddenly, Sasuke let's go of his sword and drops to his knees. He ends up clutching his stomach and falling on his forehead. 'What the hell is going on?'

"I put a serum in the crystal resting inside of you. It acts as a paralyzing poison, activating by my own mind control." Hao says to him. "This is what separates a genius like me from normal people like you; you were so wrapped up in your revenge you didn't realize what I was doing was really in your favor."

"The others…are they-

"Of course they are! They're nothing more than a bunch of fools who came to me for power, to exact revenge on those who wronged them, especially Suzaku from Konoha. They're all wrapped under my thumb." Hao tells him, standing up from his bed to walk towards Sasuke. He kicks him in the face and stomps on his head. "Now, behave like a good servant."

Back In Konoha…

"It seems Chiyo-sama of Suna died in duty, to return the Kazekage-sama safely." Shizune says, reporting the mission to the Hokage. "Team Kakashi and Team Gai have finished their missions without a hitch, and plan to return in a matter of three days."

"Got it." Tsunade says. Soon, Shizune sighs, looking her mentor in her eyes.

"Tsunade-sama, was it wise to send Naruto-kun, a Jinchuuriki, to face a group trying to capture him?" Shizune asks Tsunade.

"It's because he is a Jinchuuriki that I wanted him to go…only they can understand each other's pain." She explains. "Besides, he has a mysterious power…he can make others believe in him."

"I see…" Shizune replies, looking away with a paused look. She smiles a little as well, knowing that she has a point as well. Even she believes in Naruto.

Haku comes to the front gates of Konoha, after leaving the hospital. Those days of rest are enough for him to get ready for his return to Kiri. His friend went on ahead of him, knowing he would be safe there since Kiri and Konoha are in a partnership, all thanks to the arranged marriage of Naruto and Mei.

"Are you leaving so soon, and without paying me back?" A feminine voice hiding behind a building asks him. Haku turns around and sighs, knowing it is Anko Mitarashi. The woman looks as if she hasn't aged a bit since the Chunin Exams.

"Yes I am, Anko-san. My friends are worried about me probably." The ice boy says to her while grinning. He digs into his pockets and holds out some cash. "Here's the money I owe you for those dango sticks, and some extra."

"Extra?" Anko dashes from her spot and snags the money from him. She then counts it, and smiles at him, a small red tint present on her face. Haku couldn't tell if she was blushing, because she looks a little bit crazed. "Okay then. I'll let you live for the moment, and next time I'll treat you to some dango the next time you show up."

"Uh…sure. See you later!" Haku replies to the woman, despite not knowing her inner intentions. The ice ninja heads out the village, leaving Anko alone. She smiles as she watches him leave, and yes it's just a normal smile this time.

Some of the villagers who were watching the two become stunned; did Anko Mitarashi just make a normal smile?

Now, Haku is walking down the padded street, leading him to the land of waves. He remembers going through there before, and would like to visit it again. It will help him deal with what he should do with Sasuke, someone he once thought of as a friend. He knows Naruto would probably have to fight against him, and that would be hard for him, but he knows that Sasuke has to be taken down for what he did in Hot Water.

As he continues to walk, pondering the many questions in his mind, some of which focus on Sasuke, he spots a dango shop up ahead. As he inhales the delicious aroma, he is immediately reminded of Anko. So, knowing a stick would get his strength back up, he decides to stop by and eat. Haku sits down and orders two dango sticks.

"Ah! I'm so tired! Thank god I found this dango shop!" Someone says, sitting beside him as he orders two sticks. Haku turns to his left and spots someone, and he finds it weird that this guy has a black cloak with red cloud spots on it. He also notices this guy has a mask over his face, that is mostly an orange spiral that covers all but his right eye; and even that is hard to see!

"Here's your dango." The old lady, who owns the shop, says as she hands them both two sticks each.

"Thank you Oba-ba! It looks yummy! Itadakimasu!" The orange masked guy takes his first stick and prepares to eat, lifting the bottom of his mask to eat it. But before Haku could get a good look at his face, he quickly turns around and gobbles it down. "It's real good! This sauce is yummy!"

'This guy is weird… Eh, anyone that easygoing can't be a villain.' Haku says in his head while looking at him, taking a bite out of his own dango dumpling.

The other guy prepares to eat another one, but accidentally drops it on the ground. "AH! My dango! And I paid good money for that!"

"It's okay. Here." Haku forms an ice stick and takes off two of the dumplings on his other meal. He then hands it over to the weirdo.

"AH! Thanks a million, kid! I didn't expect a nice ninja like you to help me out! And you got a bloodline too!" He says to him, and Haku smiles back at him. The guy takes the ice stick and eats the dango on it, looking away to devour it again. "Ahh… It was great!"

After they finish Haku and that person split the bill and part ways. Haku waves to him as he leaves, glad that he made a friend out of someone, even an easygoing dork like him. "I wish I could just be in Kiri right now, with like some sort of teleportation ability."

As he walks, he suddenly receives an image flashing before his eyes. 'Was that an…an eel?'

Outside of the Land of Wind, on the outskirts of the river country, a blond ninja pulls himself out from the ground. This is Deidara. Apparently he himself didn't blow up, but just something to trick him. "Damn! Even my Jibaku Bunshin got did in…but at least it played in a diversion."

He finally pulls himself out and walks back to the forest. 'Let's see…where did my arm and ring fall off?'

Back at the cave, where Sakura and Chiyo battled Sasori, the puppet master's body can be seen lying on the ground, two swords impaled in his body. Over top of him is Zetsu. '_**This is Sasori's real body, eh?**_'

"I got it, Zetsu-san! I got it!" A familiar voice shouts, causing the two-faced plant guy to turn and face him. He spots someone in a black cloak with red cloud marks on it. This person, who is facing away from Zetsu, is flipping a ring in the air. "With this opening in Akatsuki, I can become a member, right?"

"_Idiot, it's not that simple!_" Zetsu says to him, showing a separate voice from the ones earlier. But then he says, "**It's okay. Tobi is a good boy.**"

The ring comes down to the new member, who misses the chance to grab it as it falls. He quickly gets up to grab the ring, but trips over his own two feet and collapses face forward. It is now revealed that Tobi is the same person who met up with Haku a few seconds ago.

…

Manabu opens his eyes slowly, adjusting his sight to the light of the sun. He sighs as he picks himself up, using his Starlight Rave to keep balance. He looks up to see the path to Mt. Myoboku dead ahead of him. After being told of the secret path by Jiraiya he wasted no time in heading here; it's been one month since then, and he's still nowhere close.

After learning of Akatsuki trying to kidnap Naruto he knows that they will send stronger ninjas after him. Despite Naruto becoming stronger, at a slow rate, he still needs the support of all of his friends. After all, even if he is of a special Jonin level, the boy may still be hard pressed to fight against them.

That's why Manabu is going to Mt. Myoboku, because he needs all the help he can get. Without the power to use any ninjutsu or genjutsu, he needs an alternative to reach their level. After all, even Naruto is stronger than him at this point, and it wouldn't help in him protecting his former disciple if he can't even fight alongside him.

_Flashback Jutsu…_

_"And that's where we're going, to our new domain." Hao says as he walks down a mountainous hill. Behind him are the Yontoushin, featuring Honatsu, each draped in cloaks to disguise their appearance. He suddenly stops, causing the others to do so, and glares ahead. Someone is blocking their way._

_"That's far enough, Hao." This person says, glaring at the vicious madman. Hao's five warriors position themselves before their master._

_"Ah, Manabu. I missed you. Have you gotten permission to come after me again?" – Hao_

_" I'm here to stop you from harming Naruto." Manabu states, drawing his own Twilight Star and holding it over his left shoulder. Apparently he is ambidextrous. "I'm also going to pay for what you've done to my father, and my mother!"_

_"Ah…that's right…I still have to erase my ties. Yontoushin, Honatsu, take him out." Hao says, beaming his right hand out to Manabu._

_"We won't let you!" Suddenly, four people appear beside Manabu. One of them owns blond greased up hair and has a white hakama. He owns a white t-shirt and sandals. The second person is a woman with blond short hair, and an eye patch over her left gray eye. She has a white lace blouse with a cotton skirt on, and red sneakers. The third own black spiky hair and blue eyes that compliment his tan skin. He also has a Jonin outfit on with the forehead protector of Iwa. The last person is a silver spiky haired person with purple eyes, and it looks like he hasn't eaten it days. He has a pair of blue jeans and matching sneakers with a sleeveless white t-shirt. There is also a charm around his neck shaped as the Greek letter Omega._

_That same person then speaks, "How's it going, Manabu?"_

_"Thanks for your help, Yusei, Victor, Ivir, Kazuki." – Manabu_

_"Are, so you got some friends?" – Hao_

_"We're here to stop you, Hao D. Yuuki. You will pay for your crimes." The silver person states, pointing at the madman while exposing his sharp canines._

_The Yontoushin, and Honatsu, separate and slowly approaching the group, until they are at least two meters away. Genbu pounds his fists together and poses, speaking, "The Wave Quaking Black Turtle of the Northern Star; Genbu – Magellan Reed!"_

_Byakko makes a Muy Tai fighting stance, kicking the air several times before posing sexily. "The Invincible Sexy White Tiger of the Western Star; Byakko – Lin Shao!"_

_Suzaku holds his right hand up into the sky, and brings it down slowly while grasping it. He then assumes a kenpo stance and says, "The Demon Master Vermillion Sparrow of the Southern Star; Suzaku – Mizuki!"_

_"The Subzero Azure Dragon of the Eastern Star," Seiryu says as he crosses his hands over his chest. He then slides his left foot in front of him while waving his arms, having the right stay before the left. "The Ice Dragon Slayer; Seiryu – Shiba Rikka!"_

_"The Burning Blood Yellow Dragon of the Seasonal Star," Honatsu says as he holds his right hand up. He then clenches it, and yellow flames erupt from his body in the form of an aura field. He then turns to his opponents and finishes with, "The Fire Dragon Slayer; Oryu – Honatsu Fukahi!"_

_"Bathing daily in the darkness of our hated revenge! We are the Yontoushin!" They each shout in unison, making a group pose together._

_"Yontoushin? But there's…ah, forget it." Yusei says, scratching his head as he counts the five members. It didn't really make sense, since Yon means 4 and there are 5. Is there some sort of pun to this?_

_Regardless, the silver haired fighter dash into battle to deal with the group. His eyes show a sense of tiredness as he moves on. Victor, Ivir and Kazuki go after him to help him out, and Manabu slowly walk. The Twilight Star rests on his shoulder._

'I can't let him get him. I have to become stronger… Thanks to Tsunade-sama's approval I can get stronger through this. I'll have to thank her sometime.' The young Yuuki holds his sword up and keeps himself standing with his own two feet. He is really tired and a little hungry, which is what happens when you take a month long trip. Sure he shortens the trip a little by using his Gravity Sword, but that still doesn't do anything.

The sword transforms, becoming a silver katana with green lines running down the blade. The hilt of the sword is made up of the kanji for reverse. Manabu stabs the sword into his heart, and a bright light releases from the wound. This blows away the wounds on his body, and he stands up straight. As he draws it from his wound a weird substance leaks from his blade. The wounds he received during his trip here, and from impaling himself, immediately heal up.

Manabu forms Kuro Getsuga and dashes forward. It seems whatever he did healed him from the fatigue and pain he was in just a while ago. He would reach Mt. Myoboku in no time. 'I bet Jiraiya never went through any of this.'

* * *

Manabu: Before we end this chapter let's conclude with an explanation on Juuken Gattai. The word means Ten Sword Fusion, which allows the owner of the Twilight Star to summon a sword composed of the abilities of any of the first eight forms. It's an ability brought out when Naruto unlocked the eighth sword. Depending on how skilled the user is they can shorten the time required to use it again.

Chaos Sword Final Arcana + Dragon Sword Omega Arts = Omega Cannon. As shown, Naruto fires the black and white electricity condensed and fused together for a destructive attack. These blasts are stronger than Rairyu no Hoko, but his strongest lightning dragon attack, Heavenward Halberd, at full power would surpass this.


	18. Double Dragon: Kiri no Daibouken

_**Naruto and The Water Princess**_

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto and yadda, yadda, yadda!

Kenshin: Let's see… **reads script… **It says here that Naruto meets Sasuke and fights him alongside Sakura and Samui, but they get their butts kicked. Later, my son here trains in senjutsu…but why?

Manabu: Dad, this is the only thing I can try. I can't use genjutsu or ninjutsu, and I can't rely on your momento forever…I have to atleast try this…

Kenshin: Well, as useless as I think it is, I believe in you Manabu. Good luck.

Ester: I do too…

Hakurei: Will I be in this story?

Manabu: No, sorry Hakurei.

Hakurei: Aw…

Omake-

"Sakura!" Naruto rushes into his home and spots Sakura in the living room. There he could see she has fallen asleep. On the table she's resting on he could see allot of food, and a note. He picks it up and reads it, and it says, 'You kept me waiting, you idiot!'

"Idiot, huh? Well, let's see what you think of this idiot when he stomps you to death!" Naruto shouts, preparing to stomp on her body with his right foot. He then stops and goes away, paying more attention to the food instead. "But first, I'll eat."

After eating, Naruto falls asleep on the other end of the table. He didn't want to force her awake, fear she would clobber him. When Sakura does she could see Naruto has passed out. She spots the table in front of her and gasps.

"That Naruto! He even ate my portions, and after all that time I went through making him dinner!" Sakura walks over to Naruto and lifts her right foot up. "Well, let's what you think of stealing food from a woman when she stomps you to death!"

But before she could, she notices the serene look on his face, and a smile forms. He seems so peaceful while he's asleep. Sakura begins to scan the rest of his body, drooling a little at how much he's changed since he left with Jiraiya. She then gasps when she notices his penis has erected.

She begins to get all hot and bothered as she thinks about how it will look like. Without a second to think it over, Sakura grabs his pants and pulls them down. There she could see his erection has moved through his boxers. She blushes even more as she looks at it. She takes her clothes off and rubs her vagina against his penis. "Ooh…oh, Naruto…"

"Huh…what's going on…" Naruto mumbles as he begins to wake up. Sakura gasps and stands back up.

"DON'T WAKE UP!!" She grabs the table and after lifting it up she slams it down on his face. Naruto gets knocked out from that hit, and his table shatters to pieces. Sakura gasps, realizing what she has done, and after getting clothed she jumps out the window and leaves.

* * *

_**Chapter 18: Double Dragon / Kiri no Daibouken**_

Manabu lands before the mountainous region that is Myoboku. He gazes at the beautiful serenity of the mountain. He sheaths away his sword and continues down the road. "I wonder…where could the elders be?"

"What are you doing here?" An old person speaks to Manabu. He looks to his right and spots a frog with white old man hair and a drape. "How did you get here?"

"I came along the path. Are you Fukasaku?" Manabu asks him, looking down at the toad. "I'm here to train in the senjutsu arts."

"Yes, I am-wait, hold up! You walked along the path?" Fukasaku asks him. He seems surprised that a mere human could walk along that month long path. "When did you leave out?"

"I started three weeks ago." – Manabu

"Three weeks?! That's impressive. Did you use any animals to ride on?" The amphibian asks him. He only asks because he cannot sense any chakra coming out from his body.

"No. I used the power of my sword and my own will." He explains, presenting his white sword to him.

"I see…you're one of the boys Jiraiya-chan told me about. But the other one isn't here, is he?" Manabu shakes his head no to explain his answer.

"I might recommend Naruto, but I'm not sure if he's back yet. Anyway, I want to train in your secret art of senjutsu. Will you allow me?" Manabu pleads, bowing his head towards him. He really wishes to learn a way to become stronger, and fight alongside Naruto.

"Hmm…To reach Myoboku-zan on foot is a challenge indeed, and to do it in less than a month is normally impossible…If you are someone who can do that then you're truly someone who can atleast try to learn this." – Fukasaku

"Thank you." Manabu says to him with a small smile. "How is this training performed?"

"Not yet! First, you need to rest! I'm sure that long travel has tired you out." He says to the human.

"No, I'm fine…" Manabu begins, but falls face forward to the ground. He loses consciousness and falls into dreamland. Fukasaku chuckles at the poor boy, having used up all his energy to even put up a front like that. The old toad grabs him and lifts his body over his shoulders, carrying him off to their sleeping quarters.

_Flashback Jutsu…_

_"Hey! You okay?" A person asks someone, looking down at an unconscious body. This person is a Konoha Shinobi, and seems to be of Chunin rank or higher. The one on the ground has spiky black hair with yellow stripes._

_"Yeah…give me a second to rest…so I can die." The spiky haired man replies. Instead of taking his advice, he grabs the sleeper and lifts him over his shoulders. In a yellow flash he disappears, taking the unconscious boy and his weapon with him._

_The two appear inside a large home. The Konoha ninja, who is revealed to have spiky blond hair, places the man down on a bed. He then reaches down and grabs a three pronged kunai, pocketing the item as he walks out. Down the halls of his home estate, he sees a woman with long red hair._

_"Who was that?" The woman asks the man._

_"Oh, just someone I found lying on the outskirts of Konoha. I'm going to go report the success of my mission to Hiruzen-sama." He says, preparing to walk this time._

_"That's good…I'll go see to him." She says to the blond as he leaves. He smiles back at her as the red head goes inside the room. There she spots the dark haired person fast asleep._

_She snickers a little as she looks at his body, and takes out a black marker. While the boy sleeps, she begins to write 'Dickhead' on his face, playing a classic prank on him. While she finds this to be childish, it seems a little bit more annoying than dipping someone's hand in warm water. At that moment he opens his eyes and looks up, noticing the woman playing a prank on him. "Uh, what are you doing?"_

_"…Writing a swear on your head?" She replies, her voice getting lighter as she speaks._

_"Well…at least you didn't put my fingers in warm water, or tickled my nose after putting whipcream on my hands." He says, sitting himself up. He takes the moment to notice the girl's appearance, and asks, "What am I doing here?"_

_"My name's Kushina Uzumaki." She says while grinning. There the man could see her fanged teeth. "That man who saved you was Minato. He's at the Hokage office as of this moment."_

_"Where am I? I know this is the land of fire, but…" He begins, brushing his hair. He looks to his left and spots his sword. He picks it up and brushes the dirt and blood off it._

_"You're in Konohagakure. Is this your first time coming here?" Kushina questions him, sitting down beside him._

_"Yes…it is actually…" The swordsman could feel his eyes starting to close, that fatigue that made him pass out earlier is coming back. He even falls back on the bed. "I thank you for letting me stay here. Maybe I can make it…up…to you…"_

_"What a weird boy." She says, standing up to leave the room._

_As Kushina leaves the room, Minato suddenly appears in front of her, surprising the red head. She gasps in a screaming voice as she looks at him. "Hey, I got great news!"_

_"DON'T POP UP IN FRONT OF ME LIKE THAT!!" She screams, punching him in the face. Water gathers around her fist as she struck him, adding to the power of her strike. Minato rubs his bruised cheek and chuckles a little._

_"Sorry about that…Hiruzen-sama is about to make a grand announcement involving me!" Minato tells her. She smiles a little while looking at him. "It will be starting this afternoon."_

_End Flashback_

Team Kakashi and Team Gai continues towards the village hidden in the leaves, having finished their mission in Suna. Naruto has a much happier look on his face than he did when they left Konoha, and now he's not using his saucer to travel. After all they aren't in a hurry to get back.

By the time they return home Naruto stops for the moment. His nose perk up and cause him to look around, since he recognizes the smell. "Haku?"

"Naruto, is something wrong?" Sakura asks him, stopping for the moment to look at him. Gai holds up Kakashi over his shoulders, being the only one to do so and keep up with the rest.

"Haku was around here somewhere." Naruto says, looking by at a tree. He could smell some of Haku's scent on a tree. 'Maybe he came to visit…'

"If he was here then let's speak with the Hokage. She might know." Kakashi tells him. Naruto eventually gives up on searching and decides to put it off for the moment. He then joins up with his other teammates, since Kakashi now seems them as equals instead of master and student, to enter their village.

After turning Kakashi into the hospital and reporting to the Hokage, they all go off to their own businesses. Naruto draws his katana and looks out at the sky, trying to sniff out Haku. He follows the smell towards the gates of Konoha, where he just came in. He then thinks of what the Hokage told him; Haku, Orin and Kenta ran into Sasuke and a group of five other ninjas who destroyed the Hot Water village, and fought against them. The three ninjas lost and had to retreat, and since they thought Naruto would be here and Kiri and Konoha are allies, they came here.

Before he could continue, Samui and Sakura stand in front of him. His pink haired fiance asks him, "Naruto, what are you doing?"

"I want to go see Haku in Kiri. It won't take long." Naruto tells them, since they know how close he is with the ice ninja.

"Naruto, I'm sorry but we can't let you." Samui says, placing her right hand on his shoulder.

"You can't leave the village without permission. Last time we got off the hook because the Sandaime took it easy on you, but Tsunade-shishou won't be so forgiving." Sakura adds, knowing exactly how that blond woman is.

Naruto sighs and turns his eyes towards the Hokage tower. He would have to convince Tsunade herself to leave, because he could never find it in his heart to affixiate them to the walls and run off. It's best to just get Tsunade's approval, especially since him and Mei are close, or escape while they're distracted.

"Fine. I'll go ask Baa-chan." Naruto says, drawing the Twilight Star to form Kuro Getsuga. He then dashes towards the Hokage's office, with Samui and Sakura behind him.

Meanwhile, Tsunade is already in a meeting with someone else. "And that's how it is. You will take Kakashi's place."

"To take Kakashi-sempai's place…that is indeed an honor." An ANBU ninja says, being the one the old lady is talking to.

"Remember, watching over this person is not an ANBU mission, but just a regular mission. You will take on a codename, and remove your mask." She tells the ANBU, who takes off his fox mask. "You will be called Yamato."

"There is one more person who will become a member of Team Kakashi. He is one of the members of the ANBU training department Roots, Sai…" Tsunade adds. "Also, keep an eye on him."

"What do you mean?" – Yamato

"He was chosen by Danzo. He is a man hwo previously opposed Jiji, and emphasized the use of military power over diplomacy. He may have disbanded Roots, but his motives haven't changed at all." She explains to the ninja.

"Are you sure you aren't overthinking a little?" Yamato asks the woman. She lowers her eyes and sighs. The man may have a point.

"Either way, you must follow your orders." Tsunade tells him. He prepares to leave, but Naruto, Sakura and Samui come in from the door to see her.

"Oi, Ba-chan! I want to…who's he?" Naruto stops himself as he notices the ANBU.

"Perfect timing. Naruto, this here will be Kakashi's replacement for your team." She explains to him.

"What?" – Naruto/Sakura

"He will only be a temporary captain for you until Kakashi can heal from the mission in Suna." Tsunade says.

"But why him? He looks…you know what, nevermind. I want to ask if I can go to Kiri. I want to speak with Haku and Mei about Sasuke." The blond male says to the old lady.

"I figured you would want to go there. You can't just go back and forth from Kiri as you please…" She states. Naruto grits his teeth in anger and looks down. "Although, you can go with a Jonin or higher assisting you…that's why I have chosen Yamato here to go with you."

"Huh? You don't trust me to go by myself?" – Naruto

"No, no I don't. Sakura, Yamato, and your newest team member will have to go with you to Kiri." At this Naruto sighs in defeat. He couldn't say no to her, or else he would be doing D-rank missions for life. Not only is it boring, but that is also degrading to his ninja status.

'I bet dad never had days like this.' – Naruto

--

"So, this is our newest member?" Naruto asks, looking to his left to another person. This ninja has short ink-black hair with pale skin. On his back is a bag and a tanto. He looks at Naruto and the others with a smile. "Why are you smiling?"

"Because, the best way to confront others is with a smile. Afterall, a smile can get you out of a tough situation, even if it's fake." He replies to him. He then opens his eyes to look at him, and finishes with, "But you probably didn't know that, dickless."

"D…" Naruto pauses for a moment when he hears what he called him. He tries his best to supress his anger, although a bit of it can be shown through the sudden wind that blows past them. Samui blushes a little and chuckles, knowing full well that Naruto has a penis, while Sakura's jaw drops slightly. "Now, ordinarily I would be angry at you, and punch you in the face. But, that's not how I was taught. I won't hold that comment against you."

"I see. That's very mature of you." He says.

"As good an example as Naruto is showing, I think you should apologize. Talking to people like that isn't nice." Sakura tells him.

"Ara, really? Well, I do kind of like people like you, ugly bitch." He tells her.

Without even a nanosecond passing by, Sakura slugs him in the right cheek, sending him flying off into the distance. Naruto sighs as he pats Sakura on the back, glad that someone hit the guy for him. Samui gives herself a facepalm and Yamato sighs. It has been an hour since they left from Konoha, Naruto, Sakura, Yamato, Samui and this guy. Although only minutes have gone by for Naruto and Sakura to hate the new guy. It's like he doesn't even know what being nice is all about!

"I figured things between you two and Sai wouldn't work out." Yamato says to the team.

"Why did we all have to go?" Naruto asks himself. He takes out his metal disk and expands it into its saucer form, allowing him to fly on it towards Kiri. He moves ahead of the group, even as Sai comes up to rejoin them.

"Yamato-taichou, I know things seem a bit iffy between us and that guy, but why has an ANBU been assigned to replace Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asks the brown haired ninja.

"…I'm gonna be honest with you…it's because of Naruto that I was placed on this team." Yamato tells her, and both Samui and Sakura grow interested in his words. He then turns to face them, showing a scarier intimidating face. "Is there a problem with that?"

"N-n-no! It's okay!" – Sakura

"What do you mean by 'because of Naruto'? Is something wrong with him?" Samui asks Yamato, now worried for Naruto's sake. She seems so concerned she missed the branch in front of her and slams in front of it. "I'm okay!"

"Naruto, as you were all told by Tsunade-sama, is the Jinchuuriki of the Kyubi. But because of the seal that holds it inside of him it gives terrible side-effects. That is where I come in." Yamato explains to them, watching Samui get back up to join them. Sakura has an upset look on her face, Samui is concerned as well, and Sai…he just has on an emotionless expression. "I can stop it before it gets out of hand."

"I see…" Sakura smiles a little as she hears what he said, now glad that Naruto's powers won't kill him as long as Yamato's present.

Before they could continue, there is a firey explosion in front of them. This gathers everyone's attention, and notice that it is where Naruto has gone ahead to. They enter the area and spot Naruto floating above the impact sight, his fists charged with electricity. In the midst of the fire, Hao can be seen standing on the charred ground.

Naruto grits his teeth in anger as he looks at him, and flies down at him. Before he could continue, a ray of cryokinesis shoots from the rest of the smoke to blasts and knocks him off his transportation. He falls to the ground, and looks up at Hao, and the five others behind him.

"Hello, Naruto-kun. Are you doing okay?" Hao asks the blond Jinchuuriki.

"Who the hell are you? How do you know my name?" Questions the electrokinesis ninja.

"Oh my. It seems you've somehow lost your memories of me." Hao states, noticing Naruto didn't get incredibly angry at him. Normally he should, since he did take Sasuke from him. "I guess my powers were too much for you to remember."

"Answer my question!" Naruto shouts. He aims his right hand at him and sends a bolt of electricity towards him. Hao infuses chakra to his hand, which has a dark glow to it, and grasps his attack. Using very little force he crushes the lightning in the palm of his hand.

"My name is Hao D. Yuuki, former resident of the Hot Water Village." He states, introducing himself properly to the Konoha ninjas. As he speaks he raises his hands up into the air, as if testifying. His voice releases a small amount of gloating, but deep down there's a bit of sadness inside.

"Yuuki…D…wait a second!" Naruto says in a gasping voice. Those names are all too familiar to him. He then points at Hao, a look of anger in his eyes as he shouts, "Are you Manabu's father?"

"Father? Don't even think about it! I'm merely his uncle, who lived in the shadow of his brother." Hao replies while bowing to him. He may seem okay with the name, but in actuality he truly despised hearing about anyone with the name Yuuki. His teeth grind and his anger flares everytime he thinks of his twin brother, or even his nephew and niece. Hao stands up to his feet and glares at Naruto, returning his posture to normal. "Although Manabu may be a little sore after I framed my twin Kenshin."

"You…so you're the reason Manabu had a terrible life!?" Naruto yells in anger. His rage begins to show through his chakra spilling from his body.

"Who knows?" Hao says, his mouth rising up into a devious grin. He could see the effects his words are having on Naruto, since his demon chaka is beginning to come out from underneath his own. "I hope you've gotten stronger though…Sasuke won't have much of a challenge if you haven't."

"What?!" – Naruto

"Sasuke? Does this guy know something about Sasuke?" Sakura questions, looking at the villain in shock.

"Sasuke-chan is working alongside us now! You stand no chance against Byakko's group!" The white tiger woman tells them in a taunting voice.

"Wait…are you saying you're the one who made Sasuke try to kill me?!" Naruto shouts at him, his demon chakra starting to leak out.

"I did no such thing. I did bring him in under my tutelage after he fought with you. I'm guessing he already hated you guys and wanted to leave." Hao says, chuckling evilly as he looks down at him. The black haired person glares and grins as he notices the boy's starting to use the Kyubi's chakra, just as he planned. "Even if I wasn't there to take him in, he would have still become a missing ninja. The boy only cares about revenge, not friendship, that's why he attacked you and left Konoha-

"LIAR!!" Naruto shrieks, his demonic chakra transforming him into a two tailed beast. His chakra releases a powerful blast of energy that transforms into a violent storm wind.

'It's already begun!' – Hao/Yamato

'Naruto!' – Sakura/Samui

Sai remains silent. 'This is…'

"Yontoushin, go back to HQ and prepare for Zero Reverse. I'll be completing part two of the plan now." Hao tells four of his lackies. They toss a smokeball to the ground and disappear.

"I have to stop this before things get out of hand." Yamato says to himself in a low voice. He prepares a hand seal, but is stopped by Honatsu who shoots a fireball at him.

"You'll be toying with me for the moment!" He says, as flames appear around his hands. He fires a stream of fire from his mouth, shouting, "Karyu no Hoko!"

"He has dragon powers like Naruto too?" Sakura asks no one in particular as she and the others jump out of the way of the attack.

Naruto charges at Hao, who levitates himself in the air. A dark aura releases from his body as he looks down at him. Naruto reaches up and swings his right hand up at him, stretching his chakra arm out. It grabs Hao and pulls him back donw. "GIVE BACK SASUKE!!"

"I never took him. He came on his own! The more your realize this the better off you'll be!" Hao tells the foolish blond. He quickly breaks free from the chakra arms; it's not even that he was stronger than him. The chakra absorbs into his body, allowing him to counter. He heads further into the forest, to lure Naruto after him. This is most likely a trap.

A third tail leaks off of him and increases Naruto's powers, as well as lowering his intelligence. The air around Naruto becomes hotter, leaving all but Honatsu to complain about it. Naruto bends down and gets on all fours, as his eyes and whiskers start to develop. His teeth becomes sharper too. Naruto dashes towards Hao, prepared to crush him to pieces. His chakra added to his charge leaves a dark scar across the field, enough to mow down any trees around him.

'So this is the power of a Jinchuuriki…it's so horrible, like something that can't be controlled…' Sakura comments, shivering in fear as she watches Naruto in a paralyzed glance.

Samui has gotten use to Killer Bee's demon chakra so something of this magnitude isn't enough to get her down, but even she couldn't believe how dark and evil this chakra feels. It's as if darkness has come over Naruto and usurped his reasoning and heart. Something like this has never happened with Killer Bee.

'So this is Naruto Uzumaki, with the power of the Demon Fox.' – Sai

"Get out of my way! Do you know what will happen if he keeps getting stronger?" Yamato tells Honatsu.

"I'm hoping for it. The more chakra he uses, the more Hao can suck out of him." Honatsu replies, charging at Yamato with fists enshrouded in flames. He makes a quick punch to Yamato, who ducks under it. Honatsu pulls his hand back and grabs the Anbu's jacket, using it to toss him into the air. Using elemental composition he shifts his flames in the left hand to reach out and grab Yamato.

"Stop this now!" Sakura says, charging at the fire dragon. With her super strength she could knock him out even if he blocks.

Honatsu holds his elbow up in front of Sakura, and fire shoots from it in the form of a rocket burst. He shouts, "Karyu no Enchu!"

Sakura gets blown back by the razing flames, while Yamato gets gripped by the flames. But that Yamato gets burnt to ashes, so quickly as if he was made of wood. "Mokuton no Jutsu, (Wood Release Technique)"

As Honatsu looks up in shock, a block of wood extends from the trees to pound him into the ground. The fire dragon then growls, "Damn you! I'll just burn my way out!"

Samui takes this chance to stand over him with her odachi placed around his neck. While giving off that cold stare she is known for using, Samui interrogates him by saying, "Now, unless you want your head severed from your neck, you will answer our questions; why does that man want Naruto?"

Sai takes this moment to summoning a bird, made of ink, and flying off to chase after Naruto and Hao. It appears he speciallizes in ink type jutsus. It wouldn't be hard to catch up with those two monsters, since the paths of destruction are more than enough. Yamato forms a wood clone to stay with the girls while he followed Sai and Naruto.

"You own three tails, and your power is only at that level? Sasuke will never return to being the friend of a weakling like you." Even with the level of power Naruto is showing, which is enough to level a battlefield for them, Hao continues to taunt the boy. It is something that a normal person wouldn't do, but since he hasn't suffered a single injury he has gotten a little cocky. Or maybe it has something to do with that black chakra around him.

Unknown to anyone, not even the two monsters battling eachother, one person can be seen walking through the forest. Not much could be seen about his appearance, but his black wolf mask and the golden glowing eyes he possess are easy to spot in the darkness of the forest. He makes a 'hmph' sound and walks further into the forest, disappearing into the darkness.

Naruto glares up at Hao in the trees, who looks down at him with a confident expression. Behind him, his chakra slowly develops a fourth tail. The chakra around Naruto begins to seem into his skin, and transforms his skin. His jacket blows off his body and he is shown to be completely black from head to toe. He howls up into the sky as he glares at Hao, and the fourth tail forms.

With this new level of chakra accessible to him, a hundred mile radius of Naruto's surroundings are mowed down by an explosion of his energy. It is enough to dispell Sai's transportation, and force Yamato to form a barrier of wood. He dispels it and continues forward, knowing he has to stop Naruto before it becomes even more difficult. The figure from before is gone however.

Hao picks himself up to his knees hwile panting, a smile present on his face. His face shows injuries from the fall. 'Whoa, didn't see that coming! Not. Everything's going to plan.'

Naruto glares at Hao with malice. His dreaded four tailed form is enough to scare most. The genius villain dasehs towards Naruto, emitting his dark chakra so he can get closer to him. Naruto howls and throws his chakra arms at him. Hao grabs both of those arms, and they slowly seep into his body.

'Yes! Yes!! My plan is going perfectly!!' Hao says in his head. It won't be long before he completely absorbs Naruto. In this state Naruto is in, things are perfectly going according to plan.

Naruto's body quickly begins to spark, and transforms into electricity. Soon his entire body is primarily made of black-crimson electricity. He then roars at Hao, blowing him back. He crashes into the ground, a piece of wood sticking in his shoulder.

'This was not in my plan…who knew his bloodline would work for his demon chakra forms!?' – Hao

Naruto growls and dashes towards Hao, his arms free so now he can claw him apart. His opponent reaches out and punches Naruto in the face, but his body splits apart and claws Hao at his stomach. Using his dark chakra he softens some of the blow, but is sent flying away and subjected to a powerful electrocution.

"Maybe I should have immobilized him first…there's no way the Reibi can absorb the demon chakra when it's lightning." Hao pulls the wood out of his arm and picks himself up.

Naruto's tails hold up in front of his face as he raises it up. Lightning gathers above his face, similar to his Rairyu no Hoko except it's outside his mouth. The electricity and chakra condense into a ball, and he devours it. Hao runs away to avoid the ninja and the impact, knowing he would be killed instantly.

Naruto fires off an attack similar to Rairyu no Hoko, only it is black and red, and only a little bit of the attack is shown to be made up lightning. Hao places his hands to the ground after rubbing the blood from his shoulder wound on his thumbs, and summoning marks appear around them. "Rashoumon!!"

He summons a giant gate with a demon head. This is meant to stop his attack and protect him, but the gate, the ground it travels over, and whatever got caught in the explosion, and reduced to nothing.

The real Hao is running away from the battle, his right hand holding what use to be his left arm. Yamato reaches the sight of the battle, and gasps when he sees how much devastation Naruto has brought upon the area. It hardly looks like this place was ever a forest. Sakura and Samui come up behind the Anbu, a sad and fearful look on their faces as they see Naruto's appearance.

Apprehension creeps over Sakura as she looks at him. This thing Naruto has become…he became this just so he can bring their friend Sasuke back. At this point, even his senses seem to have disappeared. Naruto turns his attention to the three, and crawls over to them. Tears swell up from her eyes as she continues to look at her beloved boyfriend.

Samui herself is stricken with fear and sadness. She couldn't believe Naruto has become something like this. Sure she knows about Killer Bee and his powers, but even he didn't seem this monstrous. As she looks at him she could see he is less of a human now and is more of a miniature demon fox. She as well begins to cry the more she realizes how demonic he became just to save a friend.

The Anbu prepares a jutsu so he could stop Naruto, knowing only he could stop him at this point. But before he could initiate it Sakura and Samui rush over to the boy. "Wait, stop! Don't go near him now!!"

She has to stop him. She has to, or else he may never turn back to the boy she knows and loves. These are the thoughts that go through their minds as Sakura says, "Naruto! Stop! You don't have to do this!! We'll save Sasuke with you, so you don't-

Without warning, one of his tails stretch out to attack her. She pauses in shock and receives a slash to her left arm, right under the shoulder. Sakura falls back to Samui, who plops onto the ground. Sakura cries out in pain, gripping her bleeding arm. Yamato prepares a jutsu to capture him, but receives an attack from a second tail to the gut. Naruto crawls down to Samui and grabs her by the throat. The sheer touch of his chakra body burns into her flesh. It's like a glass of ice dipping into a bowl of magma.

"Na…ru…to…" She mutters, her throat being crushed by the demon that use to be her fiance. He only growls and grunts coherently as he tries to kill her. Tears continue to pour from her eyes as she looks up at him.

Before he could keep it up, something in the boy snaps. Slowly, his hands start to loosen on Samui's neck. Soon, Naruto releases his grip on her throat, and backs away from her. "Naruto?"

Naruto begins to growl and claws at his body. Both the girls and Yamato are stunned to see this. Sakura picks herself up and rushes towards him. "Naruto! Wait, what are you doing?!"

"Don't! You'll kill yourself!!" Samui adds. She tries to stand up to save him. Naruto continues to carve into his body, causing blood to spill with each strike.

Wood materializes from the ground and wraps around Naruto's body, including his neck, arms, legs, abdomen and tails. Yamato performs several hand seals, and holds his right hand out to him. "Hokage Shiki Jijun Jutsu: Kakuan Nitten Suishu! (Hokage Style Force Retirement Technique: Return of Innocence – Returning Palm)"

He then dashes towards Naruto and places his hand on his chest. He then backs away and summons eight wooden poles with spikes on them around Naruto. The necklace that is around Naruto's neck glows through the chakra skin on his body. The demon chakra begins to recede into his body, similar to a symbiote.

Naruto falls backwards to the ground. His body still shows discoloring from the chakra, but that is going away slowly. Sakura stands over his body while injecting her chakra into his body, hoping to speed up the healing process. 'The wounds are healing slower now…the Kyubi's chakra recovery was faster before…'

'Who knew this was so dangerous…the fourth tail…' – Yamato

"Yamato-san, that jutsu you used to stop Naruto…could you teach it to us?" Samui asks the wood ninja. She is trying her hardest to speak slowly, since her throat is still damaged from Naruto's hands.

"I can't. In Konoha, only I can do this technique, because I was modified by the Shodaime Hokage's cells. Of course, since I'm just an experimental copy, I can't do it very well." He tells them. Samui sighs as she watches Naruto heal by the help of Sakura's medical jutsu. "There's a crystal hanging from Naruto's neck, something the Senju Hokage owned. It only responds to his chakra, and with it I can completely suppress his demon chakra.

"Just like that Hokage was chosen to lead the village, I was chosen to lead this team, all for the same reasons." He finishes, leaving them depressed even more.

"It's always been like this…I can only do such small things for Naruto…why is it, he always saves me, but I can't do anything for him?!" Sakura cries, realizing how useless she is. Of course, Samui also feels guilty, as she cannot help Naruto in anyway either. He had to save her from Nikolai that time, but ever since then he's been unable to support him. Even now, all she can do is watch.

Yamato takes great notice of the burnt marks on their bodies. "It's not a problem of big or small…what's truly important is the strength of your feelings for Naruto, which are as great as his demon chakra."

Samui and Sakura look at Yamato for the moment, listening to his words for the moment. It is true after all that they hold strong feelings for Naruto, but just how strong are they really? Can they really save Naruto from himself?

Naruto chooses that moment to wake up, his skin back to normal and his demon features gone. "Sakura-chan…Samui…Yamato…"

"Naruto!" Both girls shout when they realize he's okay. They don't hesitate in hugging the blond male, causing him to blush while trying to gather his breathing. They were hugging too tightly for him to inhale and exhale normally.

After realizing he can't breath they let go of him, and stare in his eyes with tears coming down theirs. Samui then syas, "You're okay…I'm so glad."

"Why wouldn't I be?" He asks. It seems like he has no idea what happened to him. He then looks around and notices the damage done to the entire plain. "What happened here?"

'He doesn't remember…' – Yamato

"It's nothing…just, let's go regroup with Sai." Sakura says, standing up while holding her wounded area. She uses her medical skills to try and heal it, but it feels like a poison spreading through her body. Normally she couldn't fall for any poison, but something like the Kyubi's chakra is out of her experience.

"She's right. Someone like him cannot be trusted." Samui adds, holding her damaged neck skin.

"Sakura…" Naruto notices the wound on Sakura's arm, but remains quiet about it. To him he could only believe that bastard Honatsu did it to her. He also notices the same wounds around Samui's neck, and his anger starts to flare up a bit. He holds it down so he doesn't go berserk again. 'Samui too…are they keeping something from me?'

Yamato lead the three ninjas back to where he left his wood clone, but Honatsu is shown to have escaped and is now fighting his bunshin. He unleashes a powerful flame from his body to burn it, causing it to disperse. He then summons a trail of fire under him and flies off into the sky.

"Oi, wait up!" Naruto shouts, holding his right hand out. He extends his magnetism to collect his saucer, and uses it to fly after Honatsu. But as he flies, his electric powers start to waver, and he falls back to the ground. "What's going on? My powers have weakened somehow…"

"We won't be able to reach him like this." Yamato says, knowing that since neither of them can fly it would be impossible to reach him.

Sai comes out from the forest, or what's left of it, to reunite with the group, and notices that everyone is still there. His eyes turn to Naruto quickly, and he realizes that the boy has come back to normal, after his demon rampage.

"It seems they've escaped. I'm sorry." Sai says, putting up that fake smile of his.

"Not now Sai, I'm too upset to put up with you." Naruto says to him, picking up his saucer and reverting it to a disk. He then slips it in his pockets, and begins to find his jacket. "We have to find him though…he knows where Sasuke is…"

"We'll send out a search party for him, but right now we have to rest. We have to warn Kiri and Konoha about what happened, but with Sakura, our only medical ninja available, injured like this we'll need her incase we run into them again." Yamato tells the group. He walks over to Naruto, as everyone sits down to rest. They need it, after what's happened before. "Naruto, we need to talk. In private."

"Now? But I got to find my jacket!" Naruto says to him. He really likes that jacket.

"You will listen now." Yamato orders, showing off that scary face of his. Naruto immediately agrees, and now they are behind a tree a few feet away from the group.

"I can only assume this might have something to do with why I can't remember the last 3 minutes." Naruto says to him.

"Naruto, I'm sure you've noticed the wounds on Samui and Sakura, right?" Yamato asks him. He thinks back to the burns on her neck and her arm. "Those aren't wounds from Hao's group. They came from you."

Naruto makes a long pause as he looks at him, and his eyebrows lift up with a stunned expression in his eyes. "What? You mean…I…now that I think about it, it was just like that time."

His mind goes off to think about something he did when he was with Jiraiya; The last thing he remembers in that day, he was in the middle of a ruined town, and Jiraiya had a large wound on his chest…in the end he didn't remember a thing. "So, that hollowed out landscape…Samui and Sakura's wounds…I hurt them…"

"They didn't want to tell you because that might hurt you." Yamato says to him. Naruto looks back at Sakura and Samui, who are currently trying to patch up their wounds. "I hold a power that can suppress a Jinchuuriki's demon chakra, but I can only do that when I'm close. In short, I didn't really have to tell you right now or anything. But the reason I did is so you'll know this; if you used the Kyubi's chakra then you would most likely be stronger than any ninja you might come across, but that wouldn't really be your true strength. If you keep going to the Kyubi's chakra, not only will you hurt yourself, but everyone around you.

"You realized it too haven't you, right? You didn't stop the release of chakra because you were impatient, right?" Yamato concludes.

"But…I don't have anything else going for me. I'm not smart, I'm not that great a ninja, and I'm not even a Chunin. If I can't even rely on the demon inside of me, then what can I do?" Naruto says, his depression creeping up on him.

"From now on, I will suppress the Kyubi's chakra in you completely. But don't think that will make you weak. You are strong enough to live without having to rely on that backup power. Your true power isn't the Kyubi. The only reason you can stand its chakra is because of your own. If you want to save Sasuke, do it with your own abilities, not the demon's…that is, if you really wish to save Sasuke, and protect Sakura, Samui, Hinata and Mei." – Yamato

Naruto's eyes grown a sense of confidence and resolve as he looks at Yamato. In his mind he knows the wood user is correct. He wants to become Hokage with his own power, so it shouldn't be any different for him to want to save his friend with his own strength. "Yeah."

"Do you think he knows?" Samui asks Sakura as she finishes her bandages. She looks at the pink haired girl's arm, who has patched herself up as well.

"I think so. I hope he doesn't take it too badly." Sakura replies, looking at her injured arm with a sad look.

--

"Hao-sama, are you okay?!" Honatsu asks his leader, carrying him over his shoulder through a set of trees. He seems to have abandoned his fire travel set.

"No. Just get us back to HQ. Where is Sasuke?" Hao asks the fire dragon. Blood seems to be leaking from his lips.

"Sasuke went to Kiri with Moka-sama." Honatsu tells him. The leader grits his teeth in anger, and blinks as he looks ahead.

"What is that bitch doing…" – Hao

--

After resting for another two minutes, Naruto and the group continue towards Kiri, skipping the Land of Wave take a dryer route. Since the place is overseas travel would require either a boat or a summon creature. So Naruto uses his Summoning Jutsu to bring out Cocytus. He could have used his saucer to fly himself, but there isn't enough room on his device to carry all of them.

Cocytus reaches the mainland of Kiri, after two days worth of travel, and they land. It wouldn't take long to reach for Naruto, who goes on ahead of the group with his saucer and magnetism. He would get a scolding later on, but he needs to know from Haku, who claimed to have fought Sasuke, if he's really a bad person.

But as he goes ahead of the group, he gets a little lost and ends up by a cave. There, he could catch a familiar scent. 'I know this scent…it was on that Hao guy before I lost consciousness.'

Before he could continue flying, a fireball soars towards him. He notices it and uses the Phantom Sword Tenchi to protect himself. He then shouts, "Who's there!?"

"Ah, is it you, Naruto?" A familiar voice questions him. Naruto's eyes widen in shock when he realizes that the voice is incredibly familiar. He looks around and sniffs for the person until he comes out from inside the cave. It's Sasuke.

"Sasuke…" Naruto whispers, lowering himself to face him eye to eye.

"Sakura is close by isn't she? But Kakashi isn't." The missing ninja swordsman says as he glares at Naruto with his dark eyes.

"No, but it doesn't matter now. I've found you, so let's go back to Konoha!" Naruto says to try and reason with him. If he truly does treasure his friendship with him he would come back.

"No." He replies. This brings a stunned look on his face as he looks at him. "I am an avenger. I cannot bring myself to stay with happy-go-lucky fools like you!"

"What? How can you say that?" – Naruto

"You will never understand. You will never understand my pain!" – Sasuke

"Of course I do! We were both alone a long time. I know the pain of loneliness, so we should be able to understand eachother!" Naruto says to him, leaving his saucer to walk closer to him.

"Is that what you think…You never had a parent, or even a brother, while I lost everything because of my brother! You were alone from the start! HOW THE HELL CAN YOU SAY YOU KNOW WHAT I'VE BEEN THROUGH!!?" Sasuke shouts at him, losing his cool at that moment. For those words, Naruto stays silent. It is true; Naruto never had a family to begin with, so he never had anything to lose. And even when Manabu, Mei, Jiji and Iruka came into his life, none of them died. There's no way he can understand losing a precious person.

"You're right; I don't. But I don't want that to happen! That's why I'm going to take you back to Konoha, whether you like it or not!" Naruto claims with confidence as he holds his sword up to him. The Twilight Star transforms into Chromedread.

"…Naruto," Sasuke suddenly fades away, proving he is nothing more than an illusion. The real Sasuke appears behind him, his right arm draped over his neck and shoulders. "…now that I think about it, your dream is to become Hokage right? Wouldn't it have been better if you had trained yourself instead of chasing me all this time?"

"If I can't save my best friend from darkness, there will be no hope of me becoming someone like that." Naruto replies, a smirk appearing on his face as he continues to look forward.

"Pff." Sasuke summons the dark sword Decalogue, and prepares to pierce Naruto from behind. Before the tip could reach him Sai rushes up and grabs him by his sword's wrist. "Your choice of defense was correct."

"Sai!" Naruto says, looking back to see the ink user. He grabs Sasuke's arm and lifts himself up into the air. His saucer comes up from the ground and attaches to his feet, allowing him to fly to a safer distance. The others come up to rejoin them.

"Naruto! Sai!" Sakura calls out, and gasps when she spots Sasuke in the midst. "Sasuke…"

'Now that he's gone I can use this.' "Chidori Nagashi!" A current of electricity courses through Sasuke's body, shocking Sai and bringing him down to his knees. He then kicks in the face and sends him back to Yamato and the two women.

"Sasuke!" Naruto roars, and sends a blast of electricity, which turns blue this time, towards Sasuke.

"Enkai!" Sasuke surrounds himself with dark flames that stop the electricity cold. It then rises up and consumes Naruto, knocking him off his saucer. "Enryu no Hidaruma!"

Sakura grits her teeth and dashes towards Sasuke. "I'm going to stop you with my own power!"

After activating his Sharingan, Sasuke transforms his sword into the Dark Sonic Sword and stabs at her. Yamato comes up before them and blocks with a katana. But Sasuke courses his fire element through his sword, and it cuts through it clean. "You're choice of defense was incorrect."

The sword stabs into Yamato's left shoulder joint, and then runs towards him. Yamato forces himself to move back so the sword doesn't go in any further, but when he crashes into the wall of the cave he finds himself at a dead end. Sasuke then turns his attention to Naruto, who is acting up in a strange way.

Naruto is slowly losing control to his demon chakra, as he has the red slit eyes and the dark whiskers present. The necklace around him has fallen off thanks to that last fire attack.

--

"This is your chance, Naruto. Show him our power." Inside his mind, Naruto is standing before the fox's cage. He seems to have been brought there when its chakra started to come loose. But even as he looks at it, Naruto is giving off a harsh glare. "What's wrong? Why do you hesitate?"

Soon bubbles start to form at the bottom of the cage. It slowly takes the form of the fox's top half of its body. "Let me say it like this then; who do you want me to kill?"

"Get your ass back in your cage. I don't want to see your face ever again!" Naruto tells it, showing a strong confident glare.

"…And just where is this all coming from-

"DON'T BULLSHIT WITH ME!! You're the one who controlled me that time in the Land of Fire! You forced all that chakra down my throat! You made me attack Sakura and Samui!!" Naruto shouts at him. The fox continues to stare at him, pretending like it doesn't know anything he's talking about. "If you're going to be controlling me in my time of need, then I won't be needing a power boost from you!"

The fox looks down at Naruto in silence. It then laughs, "Ma ha ha ha ha ha ha! And just who was it that saved your life all those times!? Who was it that gave you the power you needed when the moment arised!? You know damn well you are a useless bastard without me! Remove the seal once and for all, and you'll be able to use my chakra to its fullest!"

"I SAID BEAT IT!! WHAT PART OF NO DO YOU UNDERSTAND!?!!" – Naruto

"You need my power, no matter how strong you can become you will need my power!" The Kyubi tells him, trying even harder to goad him into using his energy. He knows full well that Naruto could probably match Sasuke evenly if he stops trying to bring him back unharmed, but he wants any chance he can get to take control over the boy's body.

Before he could say more though, Sasuke walks up from behind Naruto and holds his hand out to the fox. It is surprised he appeared here in the first place. "You made it this far into his mind…only an Uchiha could do so."

"How the hell did you get here?!" – Naruto

"I see…this is your secret power Hao told me about. I knew something was up with you, but to think you had something like this in you." He states, turning his Sharingan eyes towards Naruto.

"To see me inside of Naruto is impressive. The only thing that could do that is that accursed Sharingan, fueled by the blood of your forsaken ancestry." – Kyubi

"You know about the Uchiha huh?" Sasuke says in a questioning way. Naruto quietly listens to their conversation. "That can only mean, you're the Kyubi no Yoko. No doubt."

"Eyes with such powers, and chakra filled to the bring of darkness, enough to overshadow my own. Not at all, but similar, to what I've seen in Madara Uchiha." At his words Sasuke grabs the fox's nose and causes him to explode. This completely blows the fox away, back into its cage.

"Never met 'em." – Sasuke

"You can even suppress me…I may not see you again, but here's a little word of warning; if you kill Naruto, you will regret it." The fox's voice echoes as it returns to the darkness of its cage.

--

The action goes back to outside Naruto's mind, with the demon chakra around him being completely suppressed. Sasuke's eyes are still locked on Naruto, who still cant believe he managed to get inside his head in the first place.

Samui dashes into the action, drawing her odachi and forming electricity around it. "Ikazuchi no Mai: Sango!"

"That won't work on me." Sasuke says as he draws his sword off of Yamato and summons dashes towards her. But as he reaches the woman he realizes she's not going for him.

Samui strikes Naruto's body, but releases the electricity from the blade so it doesn't cut him. Naruto takes in the electricity and finds his energy back up. "Thanks Samui! Rairyu no,"

Yamato forms an earth seal and calls forth wood to wrap around and capture Sasuke. He uses his flames to burn through them and jumps on top of the cave. At this point Naruto finishes his strongest lightning attack, and shapes it in its strongest form. "Hotengeki!"

Naruto throws it at him, but Sasuke easily cuts through it with Runesave, the Dark Sealing Sword. Naruto hops on his saucer and flies up to him, with the Twilight Star active. The two clash swords and glare in eachother's eyes. "You're pretty good."

"Sasuke, how can you say you don't care about us? Don't you care about the bonds we share?" Naruto shouts at him, trying to push him down.

"I have other bonds to go after, like the type formed through fraternal love and broken by hatred. To have too many others in my way will force me to stray from the path." He replies, and a bright light illuminates from his weapon. This blinds Naruto, especially since the crystals in his sword increased its shine. Sasuke then cuts down at Naruto, sending him to the ground. "Dark Solar Sword: Million Suns!"

"NARUTO!!" Sakura screams at a loud frequency. She rushes over to her boyfriend, who falls to the ground while blood gushes out of his wound. "Naruto, are you okay?!"

"Sa…suke!" Naruto growls, looking up at his former comrade.

Sasuke holds his sword arm up, summoning the sword Explosion. "Bakuhatsu no Kenjutsu: Bakuen-

A feminine hand reaches out and grabs hold of Sasuke's hand. Team Kakashi look at the red headed female beside Sasuke, with her dark brown eyes and freckled face. She smiles as she looks at Sasuke. "Now, now, Sasuke, that explosive technique isn't something we should do to these guys. Remember what Hao-sama told you."

"…fine. Just take us out of here. I'm sick of looking at them." Sasuke tells her. She forms an earth handseal, and a set of diamond crystals rise up under them and soon it disperses into tiny particles.

"Sasuke…" Naruto whispers to himself. He then pounds his right fist into the ground out of rage, frustration growing in his heart.

"It's okay Naruto. Don't cry." Sakura says to him, although she is just as upset as he is. She is even crying, sad that she couldn't bring back her friend and former crush.

"Naruto, let's go." – Yamato

--

"So, how are these senjutsu techniques used?" Manabu asks Fukasaku. After he rested for that day, and the next because of the effects of the sword he used, he is now well rested and ready for training.

"Well, to explain it carefully, techniques that use chakra from the physical and spiritual energy inside of you, and the natural energy surrounding you, are needed to create sage chakra, which can be used in senjutsu." Fukasaku explains to the civilian swordsman.

"I see, like how one can add an extra flavor to something with two different flavors already…so what is natural energy?" – Manabu

"It's energy from the atmosphere and the earth around you." He replies.

"So how does one receive natural energy? Do I have to gather it like chakra, because I'm no good at that." Manabu says, sighing as he remembers all the times he's tried to use chakra.

"It's similar to that, but before you can start sensing it, you have to become one with nature." The old toad says, hopping over to one of the many stone statues of frogs littering the mountain. "To do that, you have to draw in the natural energy around you by staying perfectly still."

"I see. So you're saying, I can't move a muscle if I want to grasp this sage chakra, right?" Manabu asks him, sitting down as he does. He then gets into a comfortable position and tries to draw in the chakra around him. After an hour of trying he doesn't seem to have any improvement. "Nothing's happening!"

"Well of course! This is really hard for those who don't know what they're doing, and even then only those with large amounts of chakra can do this…you may wish to stop." – Fukasaku

"I can't stop yet! I have to keep trying no matter what!" Manabu replies, continuing his concentration to gather natural energy. "It's like I said before; If there's any chance that I can do this, then I'll do it!"

* * *

Manabu: This ends chapter 18. What happens next time?

Yusei: Let's see…Chapter 19, chapter 19, chapter 19-Ah! Here we go! In the next chapter Naruto meets Haku, and he starts training, and will be taking his wind ability seriously. Haku and Mei also help him, just as the Zombie Bros meet Yugito and Asuma's squad.

Kenshin: Who's Asuma?

Manabu: It's my belief that he's Team 10's mentor, and that guy who's been dating Kurenai all this time.

Kenshin:...I have no idea who you're talking about.

Yusei: Hey, I have a question; Hao's name is Yuuki D. Hao right?

Kenshin: Yusei, we're going western in this story. It's Hao D. Yuuki.

Yusei: Well, why does his name have that initial 'D'? Is it a referrence to One Piece.

Kenshin: That's just a label on those born into our family, who fall under the trait.

Yusei: What's that?

Kenshin: They have a twin.

Yusei:…ha? Then…

Kenshin: Hao and I are twins. My father, and his Yuuki forefathers, and mothers, all gave birth to twins. Strangely, most of them turned out to be villains, except Resha. Or maybe Manabu's the evil one!

Manabu: We're not evil! Resha and I are fine!


	19. Search The Wind

_**Naruto and the Water Princess**_

Disclaimer: Stop asking me!

Omake-

Naruto the fox boy rides a jet ski through water towards his arch nemesis' hideout. Up on the front of the building's entrance, he could see the words, 'Orochimaru's Evil Incorporated' written in fine white ink. After blasting in he dismounts his transportation and comes face to face with Orochimaru, and some girl half his age.

"Ah, Naruto the fox boy, your timing is incredible. I'd like for you to meet my assistant Anko." He says, gesturing to the woman beside him.

"Hey, how's it going?" She says, putting her earphones on and listening to music.

Both the silent fox boy and Orochimaru watch as she leaves. "She's new…anyway, now for this!"

He presses a button on a remote, and a rope comes down from above and wraps around Naruto. "Ha! Now you're trapped, so I can tell you my plan."

Orochimaru then tells Naruto his plan; he wishes to abduct a young boy from the Uchiha clan and make him into his new vessel with a mind transfer machine called the 'Mind Transfer-inator'. He then leaves the room and causes the floor to disappear, leaving lava below him. Both the evil scientist and his assistant watch as Naruto dangles to his doom.

But like a good agent Naruto swings to the counsel pad surrounding the lava, and causes some of the embers to burn his rope off. He then looks down and presses the self-destruct button placed there. Orochimaru yells, "NO!!"

"Let me get this straight; you put a self destruct button on this place, and in the death chamber?" Anko asks the older man. She then walks away, mumbling, "I am so out of here! This is the worse bring your step-daughter to work day ever!"

"Tell your mother you had fun!" – Orochimaru

"Oh by the way, there's only one escape pod left. Is it okay if I use it?" Anko tells him instead of really asking him. She then uses it to escape the soon to explode hideout.

"Oh, that's alright. I'll just use the jetpack…now where is it?" Orochimaru begins to look around for the jetpack he made for this situation. But he looks into Naruto's death chamber, and spots the boy has found it on the same counsel pad he was on. "What the?! Why did I put that in there?! I might as well have given him an escape hatch!!"

Naruto then activates the jetpack and flies up, going through an escape hatch. Orochimaru watches in shock, just as the base blows up. In the smoking remains he can still be seen standing, an upset and angry look on his face. He mutters, "Curse you, Naruto the fox boy."

* * *

_**Chapter 19: Search The Wind**_

"I'm starting to get dandruff." Samui complains to herself silently as he scratches her itchy head. She hasn't washed her hair for the entire time they've been out.

After the team had their run in with Sasuke, they continue towards Kirigakure. Even if they were to go out and search for them, it would be nothing short of a wild goose chase. Naruto and Sakura have stayed quiet for most of the trip. Even Sai's insults and Samui trying to cheer them up couldn't get a reaction. They just didn't want to talk about it.

Team Kakashi reach Kiri finally and Naruto approaches the gate first. He breathes in deeply and holds out an item, which is his identification. The guards look at it and nod, allowing them entry. As they walk in, the team seems to be a bit surprised at how respectable Naruto is here, but that would make sense since he's that woman's fiancé.

Naruto activates his saucer so he can easily reach the Mizukage Tower. He looks back at the others and tells them, "You guys can rest up. I'll handle things."

"Wait, Naruto. There is something I want to ask your friends too." Yamato says to him, jumping on his saucer. Naruto sighs in a low tone, and flies towards the office. Naruto levitates by the window and knocks. Inside he sees Mei in her seat. She turns around quickly and gasps, a small blush appearing on her face.

"Naruto," Mei says. She quickly opens the window and lets him in. Naruto and Yamato dismount the flying saucer, but the blond could only get a few nanoseconds to enjoy solid ground before being grabbed by the red headed Mizukage. She hugs and squishes his head into her enormous chest pillows. Yamato releases a bit of comedic sweat from his forehead as he looks at them. "I'm so happy to see you again! It's been a year since you visited with that perverted old man!"

"Mei, let go! Can't breath!" He complains, his voice muffled a little as he spoke in her boobs. Of course this turns her on more, and forces him down further into her breasts.

"Mmm, speak more into my chest!" She says to him in a flirting manner.

Yamato, having had enough of this, brings his right hand up to his face and clears his throat loudly. This grabs her attention, and causes her to stop. Embarrassed, she rubs the back of her head as Naruto falls to the floor coughing and trying to breathe. "Excuse me, Mizukage-sama, we of Team Kakashi have come here to speak to you. It's about one Sasuke Uchiha."

"Sasuke Uchiha? Now that I think about it, a report came in from my brightest ninja Haku…I can't believe that man did that much damage to him." Mei says as she walks over to her desk. She holds up a report that has everything Haku told her about.

"So he did fight him…" Naruto whispers to himself. He then sniffs around for him, but could only find the scent of Mei and them. Of course, being in the water continent, there is no point in Naruto finding him by scent since the mist washes it away. "Is Haku here?"

"Yes. I'll go take him to you." She says, handing Yamato the report. She could see the painful feeling of betrayal on his face.

"But don't you have work here?" Yamato asks her.

"Oh yeah! Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" She creates a shadow clone to continue her work here. Mei joins Naruto on his saucer and flies off across the village skies. Yamato meanwhile looks over the report, and sighs as he finishes. It really is true.

After giving the shadow clone the clipboard he heads out the window to rejoin the others. With Naruto Mei guides him over to where Haku lives, a little tempted to singing 'A Whole New World' while flying with him. She looks at him in the eyes, and after seeing how distraught he still is, he tells her, "Naruto, I may not understand the feeling of having your best friend betray you, but I know it must be hard to accept. If you believe you can bring him to the light then I will always love and support you.

"But you must remember that I'm the Mizukage. Because he has harmed three of my Shinobi I have to take action against him the moment he strikes again." She finishes. It pains her to say this to him, since he still views him as a friend, but she can't let this go without taking action.

"…Thanks for being honest with me." He says to her, a small smile coming up on her face. He doesn't know why he's smiling, but he has to let her know he's okay with her decision. This only means he needs to reach him first, and beat him up.

When they reach Haku's domain, which looks like most of the place was patched together with ice, Naruto hovers over the first window he sees. There he could find Haku reading a manga. Naruto knocks, gaining his attention, and gets him to open the window.

"Naruto!" Haku says in surprise. He really wasn't expecting the blond to come to him, but the other way around actually.

The ice user places his manga down and sits on the window seal. "Haku, it's true that you fought against Sasuke. What did he act like when you met him?"

"…He was cold…even more than Zabuza-sama use to be. He's really deep in the darkness." Haku tells him.

"He can't be that bad. I know deep inside that he's still the person I use to view as my friend!" Naruto tells him.

"Well, I hope you're right. I don't think he thinks of you as your friend anymore." – Haku

Later That Afternoon…

"Alright, we've made our business. It's time to head back to Konoha." Yamato says to Team Kakashi, and Samui.

"Uh, can I make a request?" Haku asks him. The wood master turns to the ice master, with Naruto and Mei beside them. "Mizukage-sama has given me permission to come to Konoha and train Naruto. Is it okay with you?"

"Well, it's not really up to me to say, but if Naruto and your leader are okay with it we can speak with the Hokage about it." – Yamato

"Thank you Yamato-san! I won't let you two down!" Haku then bows before him in a respectable manner.

"Haku, there's no point in bowing to him. You're a Joni!" Naruto says to him, rubbing the side of his head.

"Take care of Naruto for me, Haku. I hope you two do well." Mei says to them. After she gives Naruto a goodbye kiss, much to the dismay of a jealous Sakura, the group heads out towards Konoha. 'I know Naruto and Haku will become stronger.'

Suddenly something snaps in her mind, and she pales. 'Uh oh! I can't believe Ao found out I wasn't really there! Better head back!'

Meanwhile…

"C'mon Haku! You're slower than usual!" Naruto shouts to his ice friend as he soars through the skies. Haku is copying him, by floating on a giant ice shard.

"Don't give me that Naruto! I'm more experienced than you are!" Haku tells him, slowly catching up to the blond male. Before they knew it, Sai comes flying past them on top of an ink bird.

"I think I'll take part in this too." He tells them, giving off a different sort of smile than usual. It seems he's enjoying their company.

"Hey, get back here!" – Naruto

"We can't let this guy beat us!" – Haku

Behind them, Yamato, Sakura and Samui are busy trying to catch up. But with the boys outdoing each other in an attempt to reach the sea first, it isn't really working out. As they watch them though, Samui smiles a little, seeing that Naruto has taken Sasuke off his mind for the time being. He's now enjoying his friendship with Haku, and apparently Sai, now.

Not That Meanwhile…

A woman with lime green hair dashes through the set of a dark sewage area. On her head exists the forehead protector of Kumo. Behind her are two men in the robes of Akatsuki. One has gray hair with a three bladed scythe on his back and the other has a sort of weird looking mask on his face. The latter then says, "Now, answer us! Are you the Jinchuuriki of the Nibi?"

"You're from Akatsuki…yes, I am who you're looking for." She tells them, grabbing a set of kunai in her right hand.

"Good. Now, be a good little kitty and come with us." That same guy says to her.

"I, Yugito Nii, will not allow you to get away with what you're doing." She then throws the kunai at the exits. Since they each possess an explosive tag they blow up, sealing them inside.

"Ha! What a dumb bitch! She missed!" The gray haired member says.

"You're the dumb one Hidan. She did that to keep us here." The other one tells his stupid partner.

"HEY! Quit calling me dumb Kakuzu!!" – Hidan

"Now that I've sealed the exits, no one will interfere. I'll make sure none of you come out of here alive!" Yugito tells them as demonic chakra leaks out of her. This takes the form of twin tails and gives her catlike features. She is then consumed in purple flames, and grows in size. She towers over the missing ninjas as the two tailed demon cat of Naruto's dreams. Its twin flaming tails swish and sway as it glares down at them. "Nya nya nya nya! I'm gonna enjoy this!"

It reaches out to claw them, but they jump out of the way. Hidan takes out his scythe and cuts through the giant cat. But it receives no damage from the attack and growls. "You can't hurt a Jinchuuriki when they're in their tailed state, nya nya!"

Two Days Later…

A leaf blows up into the air. It flutters gracefully to the ground, before being snatched away by a quick hand. That same hand opens up and reveals the leaf intact, and another hand hovers over it. Both hands are revealed to belong to Naruto, who injects his wind chakra into it. It then makes a slight cut on it.

"Man. Concentrating wind chakra to cut is harder than I thought. It's nothing like using my lightning power." Naruto says as he tries again.

"Try to focus the wind into one single point instead of releasing it like a hurricane." Haku tells him, as he easily cuts a leaf in half.

Naruto then tries it again, while looking back at the hundred clones behind him. "I'm so glad Kakashi-sensei taught me how to use the Shadow Clones for training."

_Flashback…_

_"So wait, how does it work?" Naruto asks Kakashi, who is now out of the hospital._

_"Well, I guess it's better if I show it to you. Samui-san?" Kakashi says as he looks to his side._

_"Sure. Naruto, please make a clone." She requests her fiancé to make a clone. Naruto then activates the Kage Bunshin jutsu, and the two walk into the forest. After a whole minute, Samui comes back out, a small blush on her face._

_"Why are you blushing?" Naruto asks her, wondering what she did back there._

_"Dispel the clone and you'll find out." She tells him, that blush still on her face._

_"Okay." Naruto then forms a seal, which forces the clone to disappear. As it does, Naruto quickly holds his face after getting a nosebleed. "Whoa! What was the point of showing me that!?"_

_"Well, I see you did something…" Kakashi says, a little bit of flush on his face as he realizes what she did. "That's how it works. When a shadow clone goes away you learn everything it did in the short lifespan it possessed."_

_"I see…so then, this is how training can be lessened?" Naruto asks as he rubs his nose clean of blood._

_"Yes. Of course, this only works well with someone with lots of chakra. For you, you can learn something that takes 20 years in 7 days." Kakashi says to him._

_"Wow…Thanks!" Naruto says to them, before rushing off to go start training._

_End Flashback_

"I got it!" One of them says, holding up a leaf cut completely in half.

"Alright! Yosh, time to collect the training!" Naruto says, and then calls his clones back. Naruto then puts in what he trained for into cutting the leaf, and succeeds in splitting it in half. "It worked!"

"Good job Naruto! Now for a more challenging-

"Naruto, Haku! I've come to give you terrible news." Izumo says as he appears before them, interrupting Haku.

"What is it?" Naruto asks him.

"Asuma has been killed." – Izumo

Both ninjas gasp in shock, enough to be stunned. Naruto knows the guy as a well skilled ninja who wouldn't be beaten easily. Haku knows him too, having seen him during the Chunin Exams to help with his wind skills, and during the funeral of the Sandaime. It pains them to hear the man is dead.

The next day, since it was too dark then, all who knew Asuma Sarutobi attend his funeral. The most noticeable are Kurenai Yuhi, Shikamaru Nara, Konohamaru Sarutobi, Tsunade, Chouji Akimichi, Ino Yamanaka, Izumo, Kotetsu, Naruto, Kakashi and Haku.

After the funeral, Naruto heads back to training, now more determined than ever to become stronger, with the help of Haku and Yamato. Shikamaru becomes silent, depressed at losing his teacher. All he can think about is revenge; Revenge against the man who did it, the immortal servant of Jashin Hidan.

With Yamato's help Haku creates a small mountain with an active waterfall. The ANBU then brings out his wood ability to summon a standing portion in from of the waterfall, allowing Naruto to stand in front of it. This part of his training involves him using his wind chakra to stop the flow of water. But with the room he has he could only make ten clones to support him.

Nevertheless, the blond electrokinesis ninja prepares to fulfill this task. After summoning ten clones he tries his best to cut the water off. After about two hours of work, Naruto finally stops the flow a little. He then takes a moment to rest, sleeping on top of the wooden plain Yamato made for him.

"Do you think he can make it?" Haku asks the Anbu in front of him. The two of them are busy drinking tea as they watch Naruto rest.

"Of course I do. If he's anything like the boy who defeated the Hyuga in the Chunin Exams, then this won't be a problem." Yamato says, remembering the time he was told about the Chunin Exam matches by a fellow Anbu who was there during the war against Sound and Sand.

After resting for five minutes, Naruto gets himself back up and ready to work. He summons 12 copies this time, which overextends the limit the wooden platform can hold. Before the thing could give out, Naruto and the clones inject their wind chakra into the waterfall. This ploy successfully stops the water flow.

But then the platform gives out, and they all fall below into the water. After they disappear, Naruto crawls out, standing tall and triumphant. "Yahoo! I did it!!"

"He really is something. He has the potential of a true ninja," Yamato remarks as he watches Naruto. But at that moment he activates his electric powers without thinking, and blows up the bottom of the waterfall accidentally because of it. Naruto is now facedown in the rest of the water. "And the foolishness of a child."

Naruto picks himself back up and grips his right hand into a fist. "I'm getting a better handle at this wind power of mine!"

"Well that should be obvious. You are a wind dragon after all." Haku says to him, a smile present on his feminine face.

Naruto grins his trademark smile as he looks at them, and holds out his right hand to gather chakra to the palm. "Now that I got the feel of it, my wind powers should be much better by now."

"Well, it seems you guys are getting along well." Kakashi says, appearing beside Naruto at that moment. He loses concentration and releases the wind, blowing him and Haku away. Yamato and Kakashi had the sense to get away quickly before it could happen.

Naruto is okay, but since Haku doesn't have the dragon power for wind, he receives several cuts. "You alright, Haku!?"

"…I'll manage…" – Haku

"Sorry about that. I decided to come by and watch your training." Kakashi tells them, rubbing the side of his head shamefully.

"Well, I'm starting to get the hang of it, but I'm no where as good as Haku yet." Naruto says, turning to his ice friend over at the ground.

"Really…can you show me?" – Kakashi

Haku stands up and forms two very similar ice towers. Naruto forms the Rasengan in his right hand and bashes through it. The attack bears a hole the size of a tire wheel. His Kiri friend holds his right hand up, and with his left hand over it he forms the Rasengan as well. This surprises the Jonin immensely, since he could never guess Haku could master the Rasengan to Naruto's level. He is even more surprised when Haku's spiraling sphere could tear through the entire ice tower, and causing it to shatter.

"Well, that was surprising. Who knew Haku could use the Rasengan." Kakashi compliments as he looks down at the ice user. "But is it really necessary to teach such a powerful ability to him?"

"It's alright! Haku is my friend!" Naruto says to him, showing off a happy smile. His smile vanishes when he sees his tower has fallen to pieces, seconds after Haku's did. "But, I'm still having trouble keeping up."

"Well, when you're trying to use wind chakra, try to imagine splitting your chakra into two, and grinding them together. This way you can sharpen the two chakra fields into fine pieces." Haku explains to the blond. This would explain how his Rasengan had more strength than his, since he had much more experience than him in the workings of a ninja.

"I got to do it like that?! Is all that really necessary?" Naruto questions, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Of course! In battle, if two ninjas of the same level have sharp weapons, the sharpest blade would win." Haku explains.

"I thought the sword with the longest reach would win. Of course, I'd just blow them away with Gilgamesh so I probably never noticed." Naruto says in a sheepish way. He scratches the back of his head as he thinks about it.

"Of course you would never notice, since your sword has a special power only Sasuke's could match." Kakashi states. His mind then goes off to something, and he places a hand on Naruto's shoulder. "But then this is why you're learning this, to match against his strengths and create a Jutsu that he can never defend against."

"Yeah…but what kind of technique can I use that would be able to stop Sasuke and this Hao guy?" – Naruto

"Well for starters, the most important element in chakra control besides elemental recomposition is…you know what that is, right?" Kakashi says to him.

"Yeah. It's when I use my bloodline to transform chakra into my element right?" He answers, not knowing the real one. Since that's how he always does it that's all he knows.

"Well, sort of…the other is spatial recomposition. That's when you change your chakra's shape. You can do it you know." Kakashi tells him, reminding him of his lightning manipulation abilities and the Rasengan.

"Oh, that! That makes sense! This should be no problem then!" – Naruto

"Well for you, maybe not. But if it was so easy I wouldn't have needed to make Chidori." Kakashi adds, grasping Naruto's attention once more. He then shows what he means to Naruto by making the Rasengan. This shocks Naruto to the point of almost being stunned. He had no idea he could use the Rasengan too. "I can use the Rasengan just like you and Haku, but this is as far as I've gotten. I couldn't combine the elementally recomposed lightning chakra I had with the spatial recomposed chakra of the Rasengan. It takes an incredible amount of skill to combine the two together, or natural talent and/or sense."

"I see…" Naruto mutters after he finishes. Kakashi then disperses the Rasengan.

"I'm not the only one who reached this level. Even my teacher, the one who made the technique, could only get this far." At Hatake's words, Naruto's eyes open wide with shock. He didn't know who his teacher was, but he did know who originally created the Rasengan. "That's right. Even your father couldn't make it past this point. He was able to create a form of spatial recomposition of the highest level, the Rasengan. Even at that it easily rose to A-Rank, and I could somehow manage to copy it.

"But, he was going to finish the jutsu by adding his elemental recomposition chakra into it. Of course, because of the Kyubi attack that most likely stopped him from finishing." Kakashi finishes.

"So, the Rasengan isn't finished yet?" – Naruto

"That's exactly it." Yamato states. "That Jutsu he would have made could have become S Rank, or higher, or even impossible. Either way, none of us can teach you anything to do for this Jutsu."

Naruto pauses for a moment to think all this through. There is a chance he could do it, or fail miserably. "I see…but why are you telling me this?"

"…It's because, I have great expectations out of you as a ninja, Naruto. Out of everyone in your class group, you will be able to surpass Yondaime Hokage." Kakashi says to him, a smile grown on his face. He has his mask on though, so you can't tell.

Naruto remains stunned after hearing what he said to him. To be regarded as someone who can surpass their father, who has always been known as the great genius of many generations, and who has been someone he's looked up to before realizing he was his dad, is something anyone would be proud to hear. A new sense of determination swoons inside of the blond.

"Well, let's get back to training. We'll both work our hardest." Haku says to the lightning user. Naruto turns to his cryokinesis friend and slowly smiles.

"Yeah." He replies, and they both walk off to a clearing. There, Naruto begins to perform his Kage Bunshin, and Yamato resumes his position.

"You certainly have a way with words, Kakashi-san." He says to the former Anbu.

"No. I really do believe in those words." He says, turning his attention to Naruto as he and Haku train.

4 Days Later…

Naruto is still busy working on his new jutsu. Or he would be, except that Haku has left him to assist Team 10. They want to get revenge on the Akatsuki ninjas who killed their sensei. Kakashi went too.

With only Yamato left to help him, he wouldn't get much assistance. Although without him he wouldn't be able to hold back his demon chakra since it leaks out too easily when he's frustrated. Not only that, but he has forbidden himself from its use so he can become strong alone.

But at this point of his training, he has been able to inject his wind power in with normal chakra. Whenever he's using a jutsu that isn't of futon or raiton, although he only uses Rairyu and Tenryu abilities as well as the Rasengan when regarding those elements, he has to focus his chakra into staying as normal chakra. It's a little easier for him to turn it into lightning or wind, since it can easily change when he's angry, which is why he doesn't bother learning any of those jutsus.

Making a jutsu using the shape and elemental recomposition together is normally an impossible task, and even if he gets it right he would have to practice it to make sure it stays together. But he has found a way through this; with one Kage Bunshin to form the Rasengan, which he did at first before he could master it the normal way, and a second to add wind to it, he could create an updated version of the Tenryu no Rasengan. This one has a swirling wind protruding outside of the sphere, leaving the image of a shuriken inside of it that's too big to stay hidden.

Back with Team 10, and Kakashi and Haku, they are busy fighting against Hidan and Kakuzu. At this moment Kakashi is pulling his Raikiri hand out of Kakuzu's left chest, blood splashing on his arm, and dashes towards Hidan. He shouts, "You're next!"

But before he could reach him, Kakuzu comes up beside him, kicks the Konoha ninja in the stomach, and sends him back. Everyone else is shocked to find this is true, since they each saw what he did. For him to keep moving even after being struck where his heart is would make him just like that other guy, who survived having his head cut off.

"Time to end this bullshit." Hidan says, and draws his three-bladed scythe. Thanks to the Kagemane releasing from him he could easily move now. Kakuzu pulls off his cloak, and reveals four mask-like objects on his body. They each rise up off of him and face the group, as the immortal religious ninja joins him.

"Jashin-sama, watch as I go wild on these godless fools!" Hidan shouts out to the sky.

Ino watches while hidden away, and could sense the wickedness of Kakuzu's chakra. But as she watches she could see one of the things has fallen to the ground, as if dying. Wires come out of Kakuzu's body and stitches himself back together. Hidan then states, "Ha! One of them's dead! You suck!"

"Let's do the usual." Kakuzu says as he forms a hand seal. Hidan grins and charges in. He dashes towards Kakashi and prepares to cut him to pieces. He leaps in the air to avoid most of his attacks, but the immortal ninja follows and keeps up. Behind him pops up one of those mask things, which opens its mouth and fires a pressurized blast of wind. "Futon: Atsugai!"

This creates a powerful explosion that blows away the others just from the wind produced. Haku grits his teeth in anger, thinking, 'those two are using his invincibility to their advantage. There's no way Kakashi could have avoided that."

Another one of the masks fires a large bolt of lightning at Chouji and Shikamaru. "Raiton: Gian!"

"Futon: Shinkugyoku!" Haku joins into the fight and fires a giant ball of condensed wind from his mouth. This takes in and dispels most of the lightning attack, and the rest continues to them. Kakashi absorbs it into his Raikiri, but burns his gloves off.

'This isn't going well. That guy is really strong. He can control earth, wind and lightning moves to such a caliber.' Kakashi thinks as he watches them. Kakuzu calls his last one up, and fire brews in its mouth.

"You dodged that with the Sharingan…Kakashi Hatake, let's see you predict this one." As Kakuzu speaks, flames shoot out from the thing towards the ninjas of Konoha, and Kiri.

"Hyoton: Makyo Hyosho!" Haku creates his crystal ice mirrors, and uses them to capture the others. He then enters one himself, just as the fire reaches them. As it subsides, Haku comes out from the ice shards, with everyone else on his shoulders being carried out. "That takes a lot of energy to use."

"Thanks Haku!" Kakashi says to him. At that moment Hidan took the time to try and attack them from behind. But Haku uses Sensato Suishou to pin him to the ground. Of course he aimed for his vitals, but that wouldn't kill him.

"It's weird." Haku says as he takes Chouji and Ino into the trees. Kakashi and Shikamaru follow them. "I'm sure you got him with that Raikiri."

"He did! We all saw it!" Chouji adds, knowing what he saw.

"…But the only thing I killed was one of those monster things…" Kakashi says, remembering that one thing falling and dissolving.

"Earlier when I used my Kagemane, it was the same. His arm split from him, and it had a sort of heart in it…" Shikamaru says as he looks at Kakuzu, analyzing his ability. "Then that must mean those things, the monsters from his body, are all his hearts."

"Then he has four lives left…" Haku says as he holds an ice senbon up.

"We have to kill him four more times!?" – Ino

"So you've discovered it huh?" Kakuzu says to them. "Those are all hearts I've stolen from ninjas I've killed. They're replaceable."

'I see…he incorporated the other hearts in his body, along with their chakra element in the tubes. That explains why he can use their chakra elements.' Kakashi realizes in his head.

Hidan breaks free from the ice shards pinning him down, and rejoins Kakuzu. "Don't underestimate our immortal tag team!"

"It would be best to split them up and fight in two teams." Shikamaru says. "If we can stop their tag team, we can focus our attention to the one who can die from four more hits."

"Which means someone has to keep that Hidan guy occupied." Kakashi adds, his eyes turning to the true immortal.

Haku stands up and leaps out from the tree. "I'll do it. I have enough experience to deal with him-

"I'll deal with him. With Kagemane, I can take him to another location." Shikamaru says, interrupting the ice user.

"But you'll need a distraction!" Haku tells him.

"It'll be fine. I'm good enough to capture this person myself." Shikamaru says as he prepares himself.

Everyone looks at Shikamaru with concern. Hopefully his emotions won't get the better of him, since that Hidan guy killed Asuma. Kakashi then says, "Fine. Shikamaru, I leave him to you."

He then jumps out the tree to join up with him, handing the man a small tablet. Haku, Chouji, and Ino leap out from the tree, to regroup. At the same time, Shikamaru activates Kagemane and sends it towards Hidan. "That thing again!? Are you that afraid of me!?"

The shadow spreads out into four tentacles and reaches out to them. Hidan and Kakuzu split up, but the immortal one who follows religion has jumped onto the tree. Like this he can avoid him.

Haku and Kakashi dash towards the elemental immortal. The cryokinesis ninja says, "You're our opponent!"

Shikamaru uses his shadow to throw a dagger towards Hidan, one he used earlier to trap them. He leaps off the tree, and the shadow of Shikamaru's jutsu enters into it. It then throws it towards Hidan, who would get his shadow hit by it since he's going to another tree. But with his scythe he keeps himself up in the air, and uses it to keep away from it.

'Too easy. As long as I keep my eyes on my shadow, I shouldn't be too worried.' Hidan thinks as he looks down at it.

But because his eyes are on that, he is too late to spot Shikamaru coming up at him. He punches him in the face, knocking him off the tree. With his shadow making contact with the other, he could easily trap him. The two ninjas land a few feet away from each other, their shadows connected. "Kagemane no Jutsu, complete success."

With him under his control, Shikamaru releases his hand, making the religious immortal drop his scythe. He then dashes away with him deep into the forest. Hidan questions, "Where the hell are you taking me?!"

"Let's just go for a walk in the woods." Shikamaru replies, and they continue further.

"You guys are underestimating Hidan…sheesh, and that kid could have had a bounty on his head someday…" Kakuzu mumbles. His creatures come together, and enter his body, while protruding their heads. "But I'm still much stronger than that idiot…looking at those forehead protectors remind me of the first Konoha ninja I've faced; Shodaime Hokage."

This catches them off guard. For him to have fought against that guy, can only mean he is very old. The Katon and Futon heads come together, and fire both their respective elements together. With the wind power, the fire power becomes even stronger. Kakashi makes hand seals, and blows water at the attack. "Suiton: Suijinheki!"

But with the wind power the fire burns through it. He can't put out a fire backed up by a wind element with a suiton. That's when Haku gets into the action, and uses his own water to freeze the water wall. But the attack blows it to pieces, and knocks them away. Kakuzu charges in at that moment, and with his strings that flow through his veins he grabs Kakashi and slams him down to the ground. Haku prepares to support him, but is tied down as well.

"Kakashi-sensei! Haku-chan!" Ino calls out, showing worry and concern for the two ninjas.

"Your heart is mine!" He says, and prepares to make his assault. But before he could, he gasps, and quickly grips the left portion of his chest. "What…what is this…"

"Shikamaru was smart in knowing that you use blood to kill the opponent. So he prepared a blood capsule beforehand, using the ones he took from the first meeting." Kakashi explains, bringing a shock to Kakuzu. "When I punctured you with that earlier Raikiri, I took some blood too.

"You guys are thinking too lowly of Shikamaru. He's not about to let the info Asuma gave them go to waste." – Kakashi

--

"I finally got it!" Manabu shouts, a hint of happiness in his eyes. Along with that are the eyes of a sage, and a frog nose.

"Yeah, barely! It still takes you too long to gather it, even though you've mastered standing still. Not only that, but you still have a frog feature on your body, and you had to use the frog oil." Gamakichi, a frog summon of the same contract, says to Manabu.

"Even so, it's good that you've been able to learn it. Now, for you to learn how to gather sage chakra without the oil." Fukasaku says to the young swordsman.

"Yes." Manabu stands up to his feet and walks out from the pool of frog oil that was pouring down on him. He then walks over to where Fukasaku is, and notices his sword is resting by a frog statue. He moves it away and places his hand on the statue.

Using the strength he received from the sage chakra he easily lifts the frog statue up, having it fly up in the air. At that moment a sense of joy overwhelms Manabu. This is the first time he's been able to use an energy source from within, and he couldn't help but get a little excited at being able to summon such strength. Luckily his seriousness returns when the statue falls down onto him.

He catches it with ease, and gracefully places it down, without getting a single scratch on it. He turns back to see Fukasaku and Gamakichi stunned. The big toad shouts, "Manabu! How could you do something like that!? You almost destroyed the statue of one of the ninjas who gathered too much senjutsu chakra!"

"Sorry about that! I got carried away…I'll continue practice later tonight." Manabu says to them, brushing his prints off the statue. As the two toads leave to rest, Manabu takes his sword and holds it together with both hands. 'While I'm like this though, I guess I can practice Juuken Gattai.'

He looks down at where his clothes are, and can find a set of samurai armor resting there as well. He places the armor on over his clothes, and adds the helmet over his head. With it on he performs a set of katas, his white sword releasing starlight with each swing.

--

"Kakashi-sensei! I'll treat you now!" Ino shouts. She and Chouji head for the silver haired ninja and Haku.

The ice user summons an ice sword to cut him and Kakashi free, and then Chouji takes them away from the fallen greedy immortal. Before Ino could make her treatment, Kakashi pushes her off of him. "Treat it later. We've still got those things to deal with."

Two of the hearts come out from Kakuzu's body, and dashes towards them. Chouji makes his hand seals to counter them. "Baika no Jutsu! Chou Harite!"

He grows to the size of a giant, and slams his twin palms down at the two things coming at them. At first it looks like he got them, but instead they head inside of Kakuzu again. One of the things leaks out of his body, and dies. "How dare you…it's been a while since someone has been able to kill me twice."

His tentacles stretch out and grab hold of Chouji, Ino and Kakashi. Haku prepares a Hyoton to fight back, but is set on fire and is forced to retreat because of the Katon heart. Kakuzu then prepares his fire and wind hearts to aim at the three ninjas, and since they're close there's no way they could cut free and avoid it in time.

"Tenryu no Rasengan!" A voice shouts.

"Suiton: Hahonryu! (Destructive Torrent)" Another one shouts.

"Gufu Suika no Jutsu!" (Typhoon Water Vortex)

The two attacks combine together and create a giant typhoon of water. It also becomes a water barrier, one strong enough to stop Kakuzu's attack. The greedy immortal looks in surprise as the mist slowly disperses, and Team Kakashi, starring Yamato, can be seen standing there.

Kakashi sighs in relief, glad that they're finally out of the red zone of danger. "It's good you guys got here."

"Sakura, Sai-kun, Naruto!" Ino says, a relaxed smile on her face.

"Thank goodness!" Chouji sighs.

"Naruto…" Haku whispers, amazed at that last jutsu he used.

"It's not like you to look uncool Kakashi-sempai. Is he that strong?" Yamato says to the silver haired Jonin.

Kakuzu glares at the group in front of him. He takes great notice of Naruto, and how damaged he is. 'Another weirdo shows up? And he looks too beat up!'

Naruto turns to Chouji and asks him, " Where's Shikamaru?"

"He's fighting that guy's partner right now." He answers.

"I need two of you to go support him, probably a medical and a long ranged fighter." Kakashi says while holding his right hand up. He then uses the blood from his injuries to summon Pakkun the ninja dog.

"Follow me!" It says to them.

"Sai, Sakura, go with Pakkun!" – Yamato

"Understood!" – Sakura/Sai

"Break the limit; I'll be your last opponent." Naruto says to Kakuzu, performing the stance he did upon arriving to Konoha.

"Naruto, don't be reckless! This guy has the power of three hearts. With them he can resist death two more times!" Haku warns Naruto, trying to pick himself back up to support him.

"Stand back Haku. I said he's my opponent." Naruto tells his ice friend.

"Is he right?" Yamato asks Kakashi, trusting his opinion more.

"Yes. Those two masks on his body can separate and detach in an instant. But each has a heart and can move independently. Like Haku said he has three hearts, but before that there were five." He says to the wood ninja.

"So, we have to kill him again? Three more times?" – Yamato

"Yes. He's also a mid range type with many natural manipulation." Kakashi finishes, bringing worry to Yamato.

Naruto walks towards Kakuzu, forming the seal for Kage Bunshin. He then summons three beside him, and they dash towards Kakuzu. "I've heard enough!"

"Naruto!" Haku shouts, before falling down to one knee.

"You can't do this alone!" Ino adds, knowing just how strong Kakuzu is, but not Naruto.

Kakuzu's tentacles kill the first two, and the third manages to escape. But then it gets caught eventually, and disperses too. This doesn't affect the real Naruto at all. 'So, I'm going to need three at least to get close.'

'He's using the Kage Bunshin to get experience, almost like a simulation.' Kakashi states in his head. He could tell Naruto is getting better at the moment.

'Still, I can't just blast him with a roar. I've used too much chakra in training that new jutsu…oh well. Might as well try it.' Naruto thinks, rubbing his nose with his right hand index finger. He then forms Kage Bunshin, making three again, and holds his right hand out to them. Two of them mold the chakra in his hand as he makes the Rasengan, while the other supplies wind.

Everyone, except Kakashi and Yamato watch in shock as they witness him form the jutsu. Naruto's Tenryu no Rasengan enlarges and expands, releasing a loud noise from the amount of chakra put into it. He lifts it up into the air, and it changes shape. This Rasengan looks as if a giant shuriken of wind is surrounding it. "Let's go!"

'What's that?! I can't handle something like that!' Kakuzu states in his mind, watching as the clones come at him.

"I'll help too!" Haku states, trying his best to move.

"No. You'll get caught in it." Yamato tells them.

'I see…this person is the demon vessel of Konoha.' Kakuzu realizes whom he is dealing with, and just how horrible his power is. One clone leaps up into the air towards Kakuzu, but he stops that with his tentacles. The other two come to his sides, but get blown away by his flames and wind.

"Tenryu no Rasenshuriken!" Naruto shouts as takes a step forward. He then swings his shuriken, throwing it at the Akatsuki immortal.

"Shit!" Kakuzu shouts as he watches the shuriken come towards him.

The wind shuriken approaches the ninja, and since he used his powers on the clones, and Naruto used his blind spot, he couldn't get free. This would easily destroy his body. The shuriken reaches his body, but by the time it would touch him, the attack slowly dissolves away. Naruto has a small look of surprise on his face. The others are watching this, and couldn't believe this happened either. Naruto throws his head back suddenly; face palms his forehead, and shouts, "D'OH!"

* * *

Kenshin: And this is the end of chapter 19. As you can see, this is exactly why he couldn't throw it that last time in canon.

Manabu: In the next chapter Naruto finishes his short fight with Kakuzu, with the help of the eighth sword; the one I used in the last chapter. We'll even give you a title to the next chapter. Yusei?

Yusei: Sure: Groups Assemble.

Yusei: **writes calligraphy on paper.** With these brushstrokes, we bring good news!

Kenshin: …what's that for?

Yusei: We're showing off the techniques Naruto has mastered at the moment, not including his sword Twilight Star:

Kage Bunshin

Taju Kage Bunshin

Rasengan  
Kuchiyose no Jutsu – Toads and Lizards

Rairyu abilities:

Hoko; A roar of condensed lightning that has the power to reduce rocks to rubble shot from the mouth. If the victim has enough strength to move from being hit, they can end up being stunned afterwards.

Kaminari Punch; A punch charged with lightning, that has the power to increase when thrusting.

Naruto Lariat; A lariat attack charged with electricity.

Ikazuchi Toppa/Topper; A charged tackle, followed up with a thrust upwards. With his lightning power he can lift him into the air.

Hotengeki; His strongest lightning dragon ability. It takes lightning to the highest point, converting it into the form of a Chinese Halberd. It has enough electricity to power up a space shuttle for a month. But since it takes too much electricity, it usually requires the assistance of another electric curcuit.

Tenryu abilities:

Hoko; A hurricane blows from his mouth. It is on pair with, if not, stronger than Rairyu no Hoko.

Rasengan; Naruto's Futon version of his Rasengan. Earlier when he used it against Honatsu it wasn't as powerful or stable.

Rasen Shuriken; His strongest wind dragon ability, his attack is the upgraded version of Tenryu no Rasengan, in which it takes the form of a giant shuriken. It creates millions of molecular blades that cut at a rotating speed on the cellular level. But since it takes up so much energy to stay in focus, it ends up draining him afterwards. It also can't stay together if it leaves his hands, until he perfects it with another form of chakra.


	20. Groups Assemble

_**Naruto and The Water Princess**_

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, One Piece, Rave, Fairy Tail and/or Static. I can't even find a store that sells Static comics.

Naruto and Sasuke walk together with Chromedread and Eisenmeteor. They reach out and bump fists, before turning to the audience.

Naruto/Sasuke: Super Hero Time!

Naruto: Kakuzu is finished off, but news of Sasuke takes Konoha by storm.

Sasuke: Hao is defeated and I search out Itachi with the Yontoushin, including the fifth member Honatsu.

Naruto/Sasuke: Two more weirdoes show up too, and Akatsuki makes their move.

Manabu: Here we go…oh yeah, omake! The winner of the poll was…a tie. Between Karui Interrogating Naruto and Sasuke's Dream About His Mother, and Naruto, this presented a problem. So instead, we'll just do one continuation for now, and another later.

Omake-

Sasuke lies his head down on the counter of a bar, glasses of empty alcohol surrounding him. 'What a terrible night; I dreamt of my mother fucking Naruto again.'

"Gee, you don't look too good. You should go home." The bartender tells him, cleaning out a glass with a clean cloth.

"One more cup of sake." He says, holding out the glass in his hand. The bartender, sighing as he knows this guy can't handle anymore, pours him a drink anyway. After he does that he turns the television on, and a dirty movie comes on. "Well, at least I can watch other people get it on."

"Oh, yes! Yes! Ah, Naruto-kun!" At that last part, Sasuke's ears perk up, and his eyes turn back to the screen. There he sees his mother having sex with some guy, who has blond spiky hair. The camera is facing up at them, and since she's riding the man so he has to look up at him, his face cannot be seen. But even he could see the whiskers on his cheeks. Sasuke reaches out for the bartender and asks, "Oi, uh, what's the name of this movie?"

"The Milf and the Fox," He answers, and the two lovers turn around to view each other's faces. Sasuke could clearly see Naruto, who sticks his tongue out at the Uchiha and pulls his head through the TV.

"I'm your new daddy now!" Naruto taunts, going back to fucking his mother.

Sasuke opens his eyes and pops up from his bed; glad that was just a dream again. 'That's it; no more sake with mushrooms.'

--

_**Chapter 20: Groups Assemble**_

_**

* * *

**_

"It's just like the unpredictable ninja to do this." Kakashi says, slapping his forehead at his blunder.

Tired, Naruto falls to his knees while using his sword as a balance. Kakuzu rushes towards Naruto to take him out. "I'll take your heart!"

"Dragon Sword: Omega Arts!" Naruto aims his gunblade at Kakuzu, and fires a bullet of fire at him. Kakuzu jumps up into the trees to avoid it.

'That's a real weird sword…' – Kakuzu

"After acting so cool, I thought you were about to finish him!" Ino says to Naruto, who barely manages to stand up.

"The Rasen Shuriken cannot be thrown. It won't stay intact if that happens. He has to hit him with it, physically." Yamato says to Ino. As long as Kakuzu stays away from him he will be safe, that is what the immortal figures. That jutsu of his isn't scary, especially if he keeps his eyes on the original.

Naruto turns back to the others and shouts, "Everyone, stay back! I can handle this myself!"

"But this guy is Akatsuki! He won't fall for the same trick again!" Ino tells him.

"To face him alone is a dangerous bridge to cross. You can fight with us-

"Do you remember what you told me before, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto questions his teacher, interrupting him. Everyone becomes silent as he speaks. "You told me I would become the only person to surpass my father…I'm a ninja, and teamwork is important. But I want to cross that path myself right now…not just as a ninja, or as that guy's son…but because I want to stop hiding and show my strength.

"Please don't remove that bridge for me." He finishes, and lifts his sword up. He then flips it down and stabs hi chest with it, making it seem like he's committing seppuku.

"Naruto!" Haku and Kakashi shout, shocked at what he could be trying to do. The sword leaves Naruto's body as he draws it free, and the wound he gave himself slowly heals up. With it, Naruto's other wounds and bruises disappear. It is now that the sword's eighth shape, the same one that Manabu has used before reaching Myoboku-zan.

"I feel completely recharged!!" Naruto shouts, throwing his fists up into the air. He smiles a toothy grin as he glares at Kakuzu. "The Antimatter Sword has such a great power!"

"What is that sword of his…" – Kakuzu

Naruto walks a little closer to Kakuzu, drawing his Twilight Star katana from its scabbard. He then heaves the weapon up, and rests it on his right shoulder. He then steps his left foot forward, and holds his left hand out to Kakuzu, as if making a samurai stance. "Your life is in my hand now."

"Let's see you try!!" Kakuzu fires his wind and lightning power at Naruto, who takes them both without flinching.

As the attack subsides, two shadow clones rush out from the smoke towards Kakuzu. Naruto continues walking towards his opponent, showing a reverse position of the stance he held earlier: the sword is in his left hand resting on his shoulder while the Tenryu no Rasen Shuriken is being held in his right. 'Why didn't that work on him!?'

Instead of falling for the ploy, Kakuzu leaps up into the trees. His body even begins to extend more of those tentacles. Yamato then says, "He's building up chakra and extending his body."

"Probably to prepare himself for Naruto's jutsu." Kakashi adds, knowing exactly how he could deal with this.

"You think that diversion tactic will work on me again!?" Kakuzu shouts at Naruto. A large arsenal of tentacles flies towards Naruto.

"Shining Angelus!" Naruto changes his sword into the light saber form, and carves through the attack. He then uses his lightning enhanced feet to charge at Kakuzu. As long as he has the strength to cut through his attack with one hand, he would be fine.

Now in the darkness of the forest, he transforms his sword into the black katana Kuro Getsuga. With the speed he now possesses he moves faster towards him. As he does dark fumes gather around it, as he swings it at Kakuzu's tentacles. With it he now has enough space to reach Kakuzu, and thrusts his spiraling shuriken at him.

"This time, the samurai ninja claims its prey; Tenryu no Rasenshuriken!! (Spiraling Throwing Star of the Sky Dragon)" Naruto shouts as he shoves his attack into Kakuzu's chest. The attack digs into his cavities, and blows him away into the ground several meters from him and the group in a spiraling formation. The impact gives out a powerful wind based explosion.

Everyone blocks his or her vision as the hurricane like wind kicks up dust. As the explosion subsides, Kakuzu can be seen lying facedown on the ground, two of his masks broken and shattered. Even Kakashi is amazed at the power of the jutsu. 'The attack frequency is amazing. Even the Sharingan couldn't see it all.'

Naruto stands up tall and makes the same samurai position he made, facing away from Kakuzu. "It's my victory!"

"Naruto's rather strong. He didn't even need to outsmart him…" Chouji says as he looks at Naruto.

"I never thought he would have that type of power." Ino says, a smile on her face as she imagines how powerful he can really be.

"During training he could barely use the new Tenryu no Rasengan once. But he can now use this new jutsu twice, and so easily, even though it's stronger than its predecessors." Yamato states as he watches Naruto walking back towards them. "You were so tired a moment ago. What happened?"

"That's the power of the Antimatter Sword: Sakasa Ace." Naruto explains, walking over to Kakashi. "With it I can inject living beings with antimatter venom. This removes the body's fatigue and injuries and super charges it for one quarter of a day. I won't have to worry about being tired for another 5 hours."

He then sheaths his sword and helps Kakashi up over his shoulders. He then thinks, 'Coming up with a new strategy after his first failed…he believes strongly in himself. Naruto, you're become stronger. You've taken a jutsu Yondaime couldn't finish to a level surpassing the one he's been planning for. Perhaps it's time this generation surpasses ours…he may even be stronger than me.'

As he lifts him up, Naruto sheathes his sword away in its scabbard. Chouji and Ino then join up with them as they leave out for Konoha. Haku, having his ice bloodline active to summon a frozen staff, crawls over to the crater Kakuzu is laying in. "He's still alive."

"Haku, you coming? Just leave him there!" Naruto calls out to his friend.

"Just go. I'll catch up after I finish him off." Haku tells them, sliding down to where the Akatsuki ninja is. Since he's already 4/5 dead, this will feel more merciful than leaving him here. "Naruto doesn't need to kill. He hasn't as of yet, and he won't now."

"To be beaten…by kids like you…" Kakuzu mutters, blood leaking out from his mouth.

'For someone like you, we do seem like kids. But, each generation always surpasses the previous.' "Of course, an old man like you wouldn't understand." Haku tells him. He then jabs his ice staff down at Kakuzu, piercing through his skull. He then picks him up and carries the guy over his shoulder.

While he deals with them, Shikamaru, Sakura and Sai come back to rejoin the group. Shikamaru then explains before those two joined them, he had Hidan wrapped in explosive tags and blown to pieces, before burying him underground. As far as they know, he's still down in that hole talking shit about the shadow master.

--

"Good work everyone." Tsunade says to the team of nine ninjas. In her office, Naruto, Haku, Kakashi, Shikamaru, Yamato, Sai, Sakura, Ino and Chouji stand before her. After the battle with the zombie bros, and turning in Kakuzu to the medical corps, they report to the Hokage's office. "However, don't let it get to your head. There are still the rest of them out there. But for now, you may rest. You deserve it."

So with that they each go there separate ways. Naruto flies throughout the village over his saucer, expelling his energy until the antimatter venom wears off. Shikamaru goes to visit Asuma's grave, and meets Kurenai there. Haku rests in the hospital with Anko fawning over him. Chouji, Ino, Sakura and Sai go off to get Korean beef with Yamato.

"I am so energized!!" Naruto shouts as he soars throughout the skies.

"So, how long until the effects kick in?" Tsunade asks, looking out the window of the hospital as Naruto soars through the skies. Behind her is the body of Kakuzu, with Kakashi and Yamato standing around it.

"He said he'll be fine for another five hours. It's been four now." Kakashi says, remembering what the young blond told him after that battle. "That sword of his is amazing. It's no wonder Manabu wanted to give it to him in the first place."

"Manabu?" Yamato asks. He seems to be the only one among them that doesn't know who Naruto's first teacher was.

"Manabu Yuuki, a swordsman who was asked by the Yondaime Hokage to watch over Naruto by the time he went into the academy. He has no abilities in the arts of the ninja, but is skilled in kenjutsu and taijutsu. Naruto has also grown attached to him, like we all have of him." Tsunade says, a smile on her face as she thinks of him. With Manabu out of her mind at the moment she focuses her eyes on Kakuzu's body, and the new jutsu Naruto used. "This jutsu…all of his chakra tubes connecting to the cells have been destroyed. This isn't possible."

"Tenryu no Rasen Shuriken…truly is amazing." Kakashi adds.

Tsunade nods and continues, "This jutsu acts more like a fast poison than a blade. It's impossibly fine and can cause damage on the cellular level."

"If it's like that, then it's more like attack density than repetition." – Kakashi

"…What about Naruto? Is he okay?" Yamato asks them, noticing the blond ninja flying by the window.

"We won't know until the effects of the Antimatter Sword wear off." Tsunade tells him. He bows his head and looks down, knowing that it hints towards a bad idea. "Hadouryu makes Naruto immune to wind and electricity, so there's a chance he will be okay."

"Woo-hoo!!" Naruto shouts as he comes up to his home in the forest. Soon it will be the time where he would have to go sleep for the rest of the 24 hours. He enters in from the window to his room, shrinking his saucer so he could pocket it, and slips into bed.

But as he enters his bed, he notices how warm the bed feels. He then looks up and sees that his room looks a little different. His left arm roams the bed for a while and grabs hold of something warm and soft. He then sees someone moving around in the bed, and Hinata's head pops up. 'Uh oh.'

It is now that he realizes that this is definitely not his room. "Uh, hi Hinata. I'm back from my mission!"

"Naruto-kun…" Says Hinata, opening her eyes while blushing to see her beloved Naruto gripping her right boob. She slowly removes the covers while sitting up. "I'm just glad you've returned. We haven't been able to spend much time together…"

"Hinata, I-AH!" Naruto yelps when he sees Hinata is wearing only a white wonder bra with a thong.

"I've been waiting for the day I can kiss you, and show you how much I love you." Hinata says, and reaches her arms out. She then kisses him firm on the lips, slipping her tongue quickly through his teeth. She continues this for a few seconds, hoping to get him to move into the act, but she couldn't get a reaction. She removes herself and looks up at him, asking, "Naruto-kun?"

Naruto has fallen asleep during the kiss. She slowly cries a little as she looks at him. 'He…he finds me boring!!'

Hinata gets herself out of the bed and digs into her closest. She then pulls out a wool rope and ties it, into the loophole, or poop loop. She stands up on her bed and uses a kunai and shuriken to pin the untied end to the ceiling. "Naruto-kun, I hope I shall become your wife in the next life…"

"Hey Hinata, I've got this…" Samui begins as she walks inside the room to show her a flowerpot. She becomes shocked and drops it when she sees the shy Hyuga about to hang herself. "Hinata! What are you doing!?"

"Naruto-kun is bored with me! It's too much to bear!!" She cries, setting up a chair so she could hang herself when she kicks it away.

"He what? Hinata, stop!" Samui shouts as she throws a shuriken to cut the rope. "I'm sure Naruto isn't tired with you! What did he do?"

"He…fell…asleep…when I kissed him!" She whines, more tears coming out her eyes.

"Are you sure he wasn't just tired? After all," Samui looks at Naruto's unconscious sleeping body, and could see their fiancé is snoozing. "He did just come home five hours ago from a mission."

--

Walking out from a building is a boy with spiky black hair. He has on a tight, black undershirt with the top half covered by a red sleeveless jacket along with white pants. He also has fingerless black gloves, red sandals, and a red cloth draped around his left arm. This is Sasuke Uchiha, holding the Decalogue hoisted over his left shoulder.

"Sasuke…what do you think you're doing?" Hao questions the young Uchiha, standing on top of a temple. The fire user smirks, knowing now is the time to cause an uprising.

"I'm leaving. I have nothing left to learn from you." Sasuke tells the man, glaring up at him with his Sharingan eyes.

"Sasuke…don't tell me, you have forgotten about my power over you?" Hao holds his right hand out to him.

'Hear it comes!' At this, he could feel his body quivering with pain. He grabs his stomach with his right hand, using the left to flip his sword to keep his balance. As he falls to one knee, he touches the area where he could feel the pain coming from. His right hand becomes invoked with flames, and with it he digs his hand into his abdomen. This surprises the villain above, and grits his teeth in anger when Sasuke pulls out a bloodied crystal in between his fingertips.

"No…I haven't…" Sasuke tells him, holding the crystal up in the air. Blood leaks out from his mouth. "I couldn't find where the pain was coming from if you didn't activate it. I needed you to use it so I can pinpoint its location and pull it out."

"You…" Hao grumbles, exposing his teeth out of rage.

"It doesn't matter what you use against me. Your tricks are nothing to the Uchiha clan." The Uchiha picks himself up with Decalogue, and holds it using one hand. With his free right hand he melts the skin together so the wound would close.

'This boy…so aggravating…I've made him too powerful…even if he did immobilized Naruto it wouldn't matter to me if I can't control him…' Hao mumbles in his head. He then digs into his kosode and pulls out a smoke ball. With it he throws it to the floor, and jumps into the screen. As the smoke slowly clears, he speaks, "It seems the time has come to dispose of you, my dear tool. I had high hopes in that you would defeat Naruto, and I would absorb his demon chakra."

"What are you talking about?" – Sasuke

"But, it's too late now. I will have to steal his powers some other way." He finishes, appearing from the smoke in blue and gold samurai armor. In his right hand is a silver steel odachi with many red razor blades on the opposite end. It reaches out taller than Hao himself. Over his face is a Noh mask. "So for now, I'll just get rid of you, Uchiha."

"Let's see you try!" Sasuke dashes towards Hao using the speed of Silpharion.

"Pathetic." Hao prepares himself into a Battoujutsu stance, creating a shield of dark matter around his weapon's blade. "Ittoryu Battoujutsu: Senmai Oroshi! (One Sword Style Sword Engaging Technique: 1 Thousand Pieces Drop)"

The moment Sasuke approaches, Hao draws and swings at him. The Uchiha, using his Sharingan to gauge the speed, brings up his sword at the last second to block. Even with his eye power though it looks as if he's fending off a thousand blades, and because he's too light the brute power displayed blows him back. The Uchiha opens his mouth and fires Enryu no Hoko.

Hao then makes a stand and holds his sword up in the air with both hands. He then slowly moves it over his body, in the form of a perfect circle. Dark chakra gathers to the blade's tip as he holds it up. "Ittoryu: Reibi no Kaen Giri! (Abolishing Flame Cut of Zero Tails)"

The slash cuts clean through the flames, and releases a cutting shockwave towards Sasuke. His sword transforms into the Dark Sealing Sword Runesave. "Runesave!"

"Ah, that won't work." Hao speaks in a gloating voice. Sasuke tries to cut it down with Runesave, but he could see that his sword has stretched out towards him. He immediately changes to the Dark Gravity Sword Gravity Core, hoping that its destructive strength would be enough to block it. "Ah, that won't as well."

The force of the blade pushes back Sasuke into the forest area they are in, and he crashes down quickly due to the weight of his sword. After turning it back into Eisenmeteor, he stands back up to his feet and forms dark flames around him. "What kind of attack was that? I could feel a dark chakra inside."

"Die, Sasuke Uchiha!" Hao releases a shockwave of dark chakra towards Sasuke. But instead of striking him, it covers his entire surroundings with darkness. He couldn't see anything, until he activates his doujutsu again.

"Darkness, eh?" Sasuke looks around in search for Hao, knowing that even with this cloud of darkness he could spot the color of his chakra.

After a few seconds of searching he spots Hao's aura close by; it's a red and purple chakra coated with a black demonic mix. 'Found you!'

"Solar Blade: Million Suns!" Sasuke shouts, holding his sword up into the sky. It then releases a bright light, one that matches the sun, and eradicates the darkness. Hao shields his eyes as the light pierces down on him, exposing his appearance.

"Damn you… Destroying the darkness I summoned to enshroud you!" Hao shouts at him, moving his left hand away from his eyes to look at Sasuke. But he wouldn't have much time to look for the Uchiha comes dashing at him, and swings down his sword. Hao blocks with his weird katana, using the dark chakra inside of him to strengthen it, but is forced down when Sasuke's weapon changes shape. The shape of the sword couldn't be depicted because it is enshrouded with a black fume. "What is this darkness?"

The two then compete in a duel, with Hao keeping himself at a distance away from Sasuke. With the left of his sword he could easily keep this up. But Sasuke wouldn't be falling for it, due to the Sharingan keeping up with him. The Uchiha would be having no problem fighting against him.

Their duel comes to a point where they are standing on top of the temple, two feet apart. The Decalogue is now Mel Force, and Hao's armor has been mostly stripped off. He seems to be angry as well. "How…this is impossible…I AM THE STRONGEST!!"

"I told you before; all your techniques," Sasuke switches his sword into Explosion, and quickly swings at his right shoulder before he could strike him. The explosion damages his joints, and forces him to drop his sword. "Are useless against the Sharingan. I should never have fought against a coward like you."

"C…Coward?!" Hao repeats as he glares up at the swordsman.

"Yes, you are a coward. That's the only reason you hire and trick people like me, because you're too weak to do things yourself." Sasuke tells him, heaving his sword up and walking away. Hao's eyes lose their vicious rage as he walks off, a dark aura illuminating off of him. It grows, surrounds him, and rips his armor and shirt off.

The darkness wraps completely around his body, save for his face, which holds the Noh mask. It looks as if some form of black ooze is on him. This dark chakra leaks off his body and materialize as bladed weapons. He then roars, but the mouth of his mask opens up, as if the whole thing is attached to his 'skin'. "Reibi no Yoroi: Chimatsuri!"

"That dark chakra…it's wrapping around his body and repairing him…it's like some form of…symbiote." Sasuke says as he looks at Hao in his demon form.

Hao roars once again, and the ooze lifts his body up using tentacles from the dark chakra around him. The sheer force of his energy releases a shockwave also. He carries himself over towards Sasuke and flings one of its axe weapons at him. The Uchiha swings at him, using Mel Force's wind power to blow it and him away, and then follows up utilizing the dark flames from his faux bloodline to send several fireballs at him.

"Uchiha!" Hao roars, sending more axe weapons at him. Sasuke dashes through them and comes up to face Hao, glaring his Sharingan in his eyes. With them he could see exactly where his power is coming from: a worm-like leech with a Noh mask. "UCHIHA!!"

"I see…that's where your power is coming from…this will put a stop to it!" Sasuke then backs away, using a genjutsu to distract both Hao and his Biju for a few seconds. He transforms his sword into the Dark Sealing Sword and makes several swings, in the form of a dance. "Fuujin no Mai: Runesave!"

With these strikes, the dark ooze recedes into his body. The mask disappears as well. "No…NO! What did you do!!"

"I sealed your monster away. Without it you can't cause anyone trouble." He replies, having his sword turn into dark fumes. They seep into the pours of his left arm. "Of course, it would have only worked on something as weak as the Reibi."

"How…how did you know?!" – Hao

"I've once read an article about all nine tailed beasts. And after I saw it I knew, this one isn't one of them. It's just a faker trying to imitate." He replies to him, kicking Hao in the face when he finishes. Sasuke then walks off again, but Honatsu, Seiryu, Byakko, Genbu and Suzaku pop up out of nowhere.

Hao grins in a rather crazed way. "Yes…YES! YOU GUYS ARE HERE!! KILL THIS WORTHLESS BOY!!!"

They each turn their attention towards Hao, and then back at Sasuke. Honatsu then says, "Hao-sama, no I should correct myself…you no longer hold any power over us you bastard!"

"What was that?! I may not be able to control the Uchiha anymore, but I've still got all of you under my iron fist!" Hao then holds his right hand out, hoping to activate the crystals inside of them. But he pales when he realizes nothing is happening. "What's going on?"

"You could only do those when you had that monster assisting you. They can overpower the poison now that you're weakened." Sasuke informs him, sitting down beside a sideway. The five ninjas all slowly step towards him, devious grins on each of their faces.

"No! NO! STAY BACK! ALL OF YOU!!" Hao shouts back, crawling backwards to keep his distance. His back reaches the wall of the temple that leads down to their hideout, fear now present in his eyes.

"I guess I was right. You are a coward." The Uchiha states, his Sharingan eyes glaring into Hao's.

Before anyone could rip him a new one, Moka appears before Hao with a katana made purely of crystals. "That's far enough. Kongou no Maki! (Curtain of Diamonds)"

She swings her crystal blade, summoning diamonds from underneath them. This blocks their vision of the two, and when it dissolves into the earth both Moka and Hao are gone. The Yontoushin rush to where they were, looking around in search for them.

"They must have gone back into the base. Let's-" Before Genbu could lift his arm up, Honatsu grabs his arm and holds him down.

"Forget him. We're free from his psychotic control. There are much better things we can do than kill him." The fire dragon replies, looking up into the sky. "I have some more important things to do anyway, like finishing off the Uzumaki bloodline."

"You're still obsessed over that little kid? Byakko wants to find a boy toy and settle down…although Byakko might as well follow Seiryu-chan." She tells them, crossing her arms over her chest. She then looks up at the azure dragon, a blush appearing on her face.

"Do not call me that…but I am curious about why he was so obsessed over that little kid." Seiryu says, thinking about Naruto as well.

"Naruto…I can only imagine what that fool is doing now." Sasuke states, looking up in the air to ponder.

"Well, this Naruto kid sounds a little interesting, but I don't really care. And unlike Honatsu, the Uchiha, or Suzaku," Says Genbu while looking at the vermilion bird as he speaks his name. He then continues with, "I don't care for revenge. All I ever wanted was a big score of cash!"

"That's none of your business!" – Sasuke

"This obsession with revenge is exactly the reason we ended up falling under his dark shadow in the first place. Regardless, we're a team. And as one we should work together to assist in each other's goals. Isn't that what friends do?" Seiryu states, looking back at the other three Yontoushin, Sasuke and Honatsu.

"Hmph." – Honatsu

"I don't care." – Sasuke

"Kya! Seiryu-chan is so hot!" – Byakko

"That's right!" – Genbu

"…" – Suzaku

"We'll stick together to assort each other's goals. After all, most of us have similar goals. Honatsu and Suzaku want to attack Konoha for Naruto. Genbu wants money to live off for his life. Byakko wants to settle down. Sasuke wants to kill his brother, and I wish to find out stronger opponents. That is why we should help each other, by first finding Itachi Uchiha." Seiryu's speech grips them all, mostly Sasuke. He wants to help Sasuke first before his own goal.

"What? Why should we go after this guy's brother when we can hit Konoha?! It's not that far away!" Honatsu complains, pointing east to where they are.

"First off, it's west from where we are. Secondly, there is no point in attacking the strongest military village yet. We can work our way up there as we gain more members." – Seiryu

Honatsu sighs in defeat. With Seiryu being the leader of the Yontoushin, and Sasuke being stronger than he is, the fire dragon wouldn't be able to resist them. "Fine. We'll go after this Itachi Uchiha."

"Then it's settled. We're heading to our secret hideout before setting our sights on him." Sasuke says, standing up to travel at top speed. Seiryu joins him up second. Byakko, who is squealing over the coolness of the azure dragon, and Genbu are next in line. Honatsu stretches himself into place before following them, and Suzaku gives chase as the last one.

As they travel, Sasuke takes the time to turn back to Seiryu. He then asks him, "Why do you want us all together?"

"Because, you are a terribly powerful opponent. If you die then there will be no one left for me to test my strength against. You are also someone I see as a friend, at the very least." Seiryu tells him, his eyes looking ahead at the Uchiha's dark blue ones. He truly means those words.

"Naruto once said the same thing." Sasuke replies, a small smile on his face.

--

"Hao-sama, it seems we have lost our chance. Without the Decalogue to stand up to the Twilight Star, and the darkness of the Uchiha that powers it, we won't get closer to Naruto anymore. We'll have to cancel our plans." Moka says to her boss. Despite him not holding any more control over them, she still stands by his side, helping the villainous Jinchuuriki.

But despite her loyalty, he immediately turns it down by turning back at her and grabbing her by the neck. It looks more like he struck her than gripped her. Wheezing and out of breath, he says to her, "Be quiet…even you can make me angry at this point."

"My…my apologizes, Hao-sama…" She says to him. Not much could be made out clearly because of the force he is applying to her throat. Hao releases her neck and stares into her eyes. Dark energy leaks off his body little by little, and then recedes back into his body.

"Sasuke! That damn…Uchiha Head!!" He roars, more darkness trying to separate itself from his body. Even this attempt has failed though. "Once this seal has been released, I shall drink his blood out of his skull!!"

"Hao-sama, let's not be hasty. We have to find someone who can get it off first." She tells the man, who begins coughing up blood. The Jinchuuriki then falls down on top of her. Moka manages to keep her balance. "Hao-sama!"

"Uchiha no…UCHIHA!!" Hao growls, more blood coming out from his closed teeth. His anger soon subsides as he begins to bleed more. His eyes grow hazy. "Get me sake…"

"Yes, Hao-sama." She says in loyalty.

Before she could leave him to procure his favorite drink, a large gourd shaped jug is planted behind them. Two of those wide red drinking cups are placed there too. Moka turns around and gasps, recognizing the person who did so. This man is coated by the darkness of the room they are in, but he is definitely tall. He stands at 7'2, taller than the 6'5 Hao, and makes Moka seem like a dwarf. She could also spot golden glowing eyes, and a serpent tongue. The figure then laughs, "Kua ha hahahahaha! Kua ha hahahaha!"

"What the hell are you doing here? Where were you when Sasuke Uchiha attacked Hao-sama!?" Moka shouts, pointing a diamond dagger at him. The figure laughs in his weird way once again, glaring at the little servant.

"I am sorry, cock. I was busy getting more sake to respond, cock." The man says as he sits down. A little bit of his face could be seen now; he has a big scar across the section between his eyes, a golden war helmet, golden glowing eyes, and sharp snake like fangs. He also has a chicken girdle under his neck.

"Your obedience is to Hao-sama! Whenever he is in danger you have to stand by him no matter what!" Moka explains, grabbing the man by his armor's collar. "And stop saying 'cock' all the time! What are you, a chicken or a snake!?"

"Basilisks are snakes from chicken eggs, cock. That makes me a rooster and a snake, cock!" – Man

"So do you have to say cock all the time?" – Moka

"Yes I do, rooster!" He says. Changing words at that last moment pisses her off.

"You son of a-

"Sheji, where is Long?" Hao questions, causing Moka to stop her assault. She slowly backs away from Sheji. Hao turns around to face him, holding his stomach in pain. "He said he had to go do something…where is he?!"

"Ya hahahaha! This isn't like you Hao-sama." An extra voice says, accompanied by footsteps. Hao turns his eyes to a dark corner, and spots a man draped in a long gold and red robe. His appearance couldn't be seen, but he seems to be the same size as Moka. "Who would have thought that Sasuke Uchiha would be the end of your business?"

"Shut up!! Where were you when this happened?!" Hao shouts, crawling over to Sheji to take one of the red cups. He then holds it out, until Sheji starts pouring some on the cup. Hao then takes a long sip, and sighs out of pleasure. "You could have stopped Sasuke Uchiha."

"I couldn't. His Sharingan is too strong for me." This new person says, bowing down to Hao as he drinks. His head stays low even as he finishes, and his long golden hair can be seen.

"I see you're more useless than I thought. Maybe I should kill you now…" Hao comments, holding his cup out to Sheji for more sake. "Sasuke Uchiha is definitely too strong, and those other servants will have found a way to destroy the devices that allow me control over them."

"Sasuke's only purpose in this organization is to fight Naruto so you can absorb the Kyubi's chakra, and kill Daijinryuu. He's strong enough as it is, so if he were to fight Naruto-kun now he could surely impair him." _He_ says to Hao. This gives him a little insight on where he can go from this.

"Is that so… I guess if Sasuke finds out the truth about his clan he'll want revenge on Konoha. That's exactly what that other Uchiha is planning." He takes a drink of sake. "In that moment Naruto will have to fight, but he'll be too much of a bleeding heart to stop him. From what I've seen he still wants to bring him back as a friend."

"Then we'll leave things as they are. If things go right, everything will be yours, Hao-sama." _He_ says, still bowing down before the heavy drinker. Hao chuckles a little as he looks back at _him_, his teeth grinning into a smile. Finally, there's a star of hope over his life, or maybe it's from how drunk he's become.

In _his_ mind _he _chuckles, glaring up at Hao as he drinks himself silly.

Hao drops the cup to the ground after finishing his drinks, the effects of the sake taking over him. "But those others are in the way. Sasuke Uchiha can deal with Naruto alone. I want you to send someone to kill those five."

"Sure. I'll send my most trusted subordinate Rouki." – _That Guy_

Two Days Later…

"You're late!" Tsunade shouts, looking back at the white haired pervert in front of her desk. Beside him are Naruto and Sakura. "What were you doing, taking your sweet time?"

"Well excuse me, princess! I'm still a little fatigued from the Antimatter Sword." Naruto explains, yawning once while holding his right hand over his mouth. "I had to spend my waking hours helping Hinata cope with what I did, even though I didn't do anything."

"It was still your fault, Naruto." Sakura tells him.

"She overreacted!" – Naruto

"Enough! This is not why I brought you here!" Tsunade yell, getting them to stop their bickering.

"Well, why did you then?" Naruto asks her, but he only gets an emotionless glare.

"It seems Sasuke Uchiha has escaped Hao's grasp." Jiraiya says. This information causes the two ninjas who were once his friends to lift their eyebrows in shock.

"Huh? Is…is that true?" Naruto questions, stepping forward to Tsunade. She nods.

"Then…" – Sakura

"HA! I knew Sasuke would be coming back!" Naruto says with confidence. But because he didn't get a response, he could only guess that he's wrong. With a sad look on his face he asks, "So, he's not coming back?"

"It seems…that's not the case…not after what he did afterwards." Jiraiya states, looking away. His eyes end at the window. "He recruited five missing ninjas Hao had under his control."

"So wait, even though that idiot is free from his influence he still won't come back!?" Naruto shouts, angry that his best friend would do something so stupid.

"We've gathered a report on Sasuke. In order to kill his brother, he has gathered those five together to engage Akatsuki." Tsunade says to the teenagers.

Naruto takes a minute to think about what to do, and a smile appears on his face. "Then it's settled. We have to gather a small team to go after him…if that mission to capture Akatsuki is still up, right?"

"Yeah…" Tsunade replies.

"Naruto, what are you…OH!" Sakura says with a gasp at the end. She finally understands his motive.

"The only way to get Sasuke is to nab what he's after…Itachi Uchiha!"

--

Outside of Konoha, clouds begin to gather. Within the dark smog the sounds of thunder roar. Two ninjas in Akatsuki cloaks can be seen standing on top of a cliff. One is Itachi, and the other is Kisame. Shark face then comments, "Hmm, looks like it's about to rain."

"More like a storm." The Uchiha replies.

"Let's go get out of the rain. We'll be getting in touch with our leader soon, thanks to him." Kisame says, looking at the end of his large sword. Hanging off it is the unconscious body of an old man.

"I think he's dying. Maybe we should treat him." Itachi tells his partner.

"Please, the Yonbi wouldn't die from something like this. After all he uses the Yoton…" He replies, lightly placing the old man on the ground. They head to the trees and squat.

"It will take some time. Let's rest anyway." Itachi says, crossing his arms over his chest. Suddenly, they each blink in a flinching manner. Something like this could only happen when the Leader wishes to call upon them. "Perfect timing as usual."

After tying down the unconscious Jinchuuriki, they both close their eyes and perform the tiger seal. This brings them to a dark cave like location. In a circle are the other living members of Akatsuki; the leader, that blue haired member, Tobi, Zetsu, and Deidara.

"You're late." The leader says, looking at both Itachi and Kisame.

"We caught the host of the Yonbi. It also took a while to tie him down." Itachi tells them.

"Very well. It looks like we're all here." – Leader

"Except Hidan and Kakuzu. They seem to be missing." Kisame points out. It seems they're in the dark of what happened, although Itachi looks to be less surprised.

"Both of them are dead." Says the Leader. With these words the entire group becomes silent, probably to begin their respects for the undead duo.

"Ha! So the zombie bros kicked the bucket finally?!" Okay, maybe not. With Kisame's words the silence has been broken.

"Don't talk about your comrades like that." – Leader

"Who did them in?" – Itachi

"Konoha troops. The main contributors were Kakashi, the last living Hyoton, and the Kyubi Jinchuuriki." Zetsu tells them, speaking with both his voices this time.

"Those guys are really strong. They even beat Deidara-san!" Tobi states with zeal.

"TOBI!! DON'T MAKE ME BLAST YOU!!" The explosive expert yells at the younger member.

"Now, now, patience is a virtue, but it has its limits too. Your patience may be-

"Enough!" The leader shouts, grasping their attention finally.

"Can we just get to sealing this guy now?" Kisame says, holding his hands up to perform the sealing.

"One more thing… it concerns someone you know, Itachi." The Leader states, turning his eyes to the sole known Uchiha in the room. He makes no response and continues to stare at him. "It seems Sasuke Uchiha has escaped from Hao's grasp."

"He has gathered some companions that may pose a problem to us, all of whom use to work under Hao himself. He'll probably be coming after Itachi-san soon." Zetsu adds, having been able to witness the group in action while in hiding.

"Who are these people?" Deidara questions, a little curious as to who they could be.

"Seiryu Shiba Rikka, Genbu Magellan Reed, Suzaku, Byakko Lin Shao, and Honatsu Fukahi." – Zetsu

"If they are ever to get in our way, we'll have to get rid of them. No problems with that, right Itachi?" The Leader says to the Uchiha.

Itachi remains emotionless and silent even as they speak about his brother to him, since after all he is the one that twisted Sasuke that way in the first place. It's only natural he would form a team with the purpose of coming after him. Hopefully for him, he possesses enough hate.

"Now, onto the Yonbi." The Leader states, holding his hands up into the tiger seal. The others follow his example and perform the sealing.

--

"A team of four may be good, but eight has a better chance." Kakashi says as him and a group of seven other ninjas walk out from the gates of Konoha. Wrapped in white cloaks stand Naruto, Sakura, Haku, Yamato, Hinata, Shino, Kiba and the former Anbu himself. Sai couldn't make it because on account of being called upon by his superior.

"Right." Naruto states, holding his right hand up to his face. He then turns his attention straight ahead, and makes his signature pose. "Charge straight ahead to the west for Itachi!"

"Uh, actually," Yamato says as he places his hand on Naruto's right shoulder. "We're going east."

"EH?!" Naruto flinches when Yamato corrects him. Sakura face palms herself in reaction to his idiocy. Sure she's use to it, but not when he poses and makes a fool out of himself. And he looks so cool when he does that pose too, she thinks.

The Eight Man Squad head out of the safety of Konoha and begin their search for Itachi, or an Akatsuki member who may know his whereabouts. Even someone who works with Akatsuki as a subordinate and who may not even be a full member may be useful. To help in their search Kakashi even summons his Ninken squad and splits them between teams.

During the search, Naruto splits up from Yamato and Hinata, who were chosen to look after him. He seems to be deep in thought; Sasuke continuing with his revenge, the many Akatsuki attacks he's been dealing with lately, and those weird dreams he's been having. It is then that he realizes something. "Each time I use the Kyubi's chakra in a large amount, I have a weird dream about that monster."

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata calls out, landing beside him from the trees. Yamato does the same and approaches the two. "Naruto-kun, you can't leave our line of sight. Since we're looking for Akatsuki you need to stay close to us."

"Hinata, thanks for the concern, but I can take care of myself. After all I did take out that Kakuzu all by myself!" Naruto says, crossing his arms together behind his head while grinning.

"You only one because Kakashi and Shikamaru wore him down. You won't get far with your Rasen Shuriken at its level now." Yamato tells him.

"I know my new technique is still in its development stage, but that's all right. There's a problem, I'll figure it through myself." Naruto states confidently. After he speaks, a group of creatures crawls over to them, hidden in the shadows.

Elsewhere, Kakashi and Kiba are battling against a group of red humanoid creatures. For faces they have giant mouths, and they each hold cutlasses.

"Where did these things come from?" Kiba complains as he trashes one with Tsuga. After receiving the blow it disappears.

Kakashi cuts one down with his kunai and continues to dodge their blades. He then lifts his left leg to kick one of their swords out of their hands, and sweep kicks it to the ground. With it in a vulnerable position he stabs it in the neck, causing it to disappear. "They're not that strong it seems, and they disappear when they're killed. They might be summons."

"Who would summon these things? Is that even possible!?" Kiba questions as he, Akamaru and Pakkun regroup together with the silver haired Jonin.

"If we can get one to talk they can tell us who's behind this." Kakashi says, holding his kunai up. He then aims it at the creatures, awaiting the first one to approach.

That one holds its sword up and prepares to lunge at them. But just before it could get within reach, it stops. Kakashi blinks in shock at this sudden behavior, and notices that they've all stopped. The creature before Kakashi lowers its sword, and faces east of their position with a dazed look. In a crackly, drone tone voice, it says, "Uzumaki!"

"Huh?" Kiba mutters. He watches as they ignore the two ninjas before them and head east. "What's going on?"

"Take this!" Sakura shouts as she punches one in the stomach. She is currently in another location fighting off the creatures too. "Where did these things come from?"

One of them sneaks up behind her and grabs hold of her. It then positions its blade to her neck, even as she struggles to get free. But just as quickly it releases her, sputtering, "Uzumaki!"

"Uzumaki!" Another says, and the entire group that was just after Sakura leaves her behind.

"Uzumaki…they're after Naruto…" Sakura mutters to herself. 'Could they be with Akatsuki?'

--

"Gilgamesh!" Naruto shouts, slamming his sword down at one of the red creatures. Another one creeps up behind him and tries to stab him, but he flips his sword and jabs its stomach. 'This is endless.'

"Damn you, Uzumaki Naruto!" Another creature mutters.

"Why? Why are they targeting Naruto-kun?" Hinata asks as she slams her Juuken fist into a monster's stomach.

"I don't know!" Yamato adds, kicking one away.

"Why are they after me?" Naruto crosses swords with one of the creatures, but this is just a distraction to keep him from striking the one coming up behind him. He pushes the creature in front of him away and spins around to carve it apart with the Chaos Sword. He then hops back to avoid a creature that tries to hit him.

"Uzumaki!" More of them sputter.

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata shouts as she leaps to his side. She then stands in front of Naruto in her stance. "Don't worry, I'll protect you!"

"Hinata…" – Naruto

"Naruto!" Yamato says as he lands next to them. "You have any idea why they're after you?"

"I don't know; at first I thought they might be with Akatsuki, but it's clear they're trying to kill me." Naruto says as he blocks one of the monster's swords with the Twilight Star. He then pushes it off and summons the Chaos Sword Final Arcana. "I'll get rid of them. Final Arcana: Shiro to Kuro Raiden no Mai! (Dance of White and Black Lightning)"

Naruto tosses both his swords in the air, forcing black and white lightning to release from its blades. Yamato and Hinata duck when they spin around them and destroy the creatures. When the smoke disappears Hinata, Yamato and Naruto can be seen standing while unharmed. The twin swords return to Naruto's hands.

"What were those things?" Hinata asks. Her breathing slows down as she looks at the surrounding area. "Those seem like summonings to me."

--

"Uzumaki…UZUMAKI!!" Suzaku growls, punching his right fist straight into a tree. It busts through and splinters the tree to pieces.

"Suzaku, you need to control your anger. Remember what happened last time?" Seiryu questions the vermilion sparrow. "Besides, we have to look for Itachi Uchiha, not some kid you have a grudge against."

"It's all his fault…HIS FAULT!!" Suzaku runs away further into the forest.

"What's his problem?" Sasuke asks as he continues moving forward. Seiryu increases his pace to catch up with him.

"Suzaku has always been like that, ever since his plan failed, although he stays quiet to keep his true personality under wrap. He was a member of Konoha before he got stripped of his ninja position. He then had to run away to plan his revenge against Naruto." The azure dragon says to the Uchiha. This grabs their team leader's attention.

"Why do Honatsu and Suzaku want Naruto?" – Sasuke

"Honatsu wants revenge on the Uzumaki clan because Kushina defeated him and got him kicked out of his own family. Suzaku, no, I should use his real name now…Mizuki," Upon Seiryu's revelation of Suzaku's real identity, Sasuke grows even more intrigued with the story. After all, the name Mizuki has come across him in life, as the name of his former instructor back at the academy. "Mizuki wants to kill Naruto because he exposed him for the traitor he is, and humiliated him. Also, he is angry at the demon inside of him and is taking that rage out on Naruto as well."

"I see the three of us share something we want: revenge." Sasuke says with a grin. The two don't seem to notice someone in hiding following them. This person has an orange spiral mask. "You can come out now."

Tobi wanders out from the trees, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly as he is exposed. "Ah, you must Sasuke-kun! You look just like Itachi-san!"

Sasuke reacts to his words by glaring at him. This scares Tobi back. But before Sasuke could make any other action, a giant bird of clay flies down towards the Uchiha and Seiryu. The ice dragon pushes him away and opens his mouth, shouting, "Koryu no Hoko! (Ice Dragon's Roar)"

A giant blast of icy wind blows from his mouth, freezing the bird in an instance. But when it touches down on the ground the bird explodes, and the ice scatters all around. The ice dragon receives the frozen water, and remains completely fine. A second person lands in the midst of the battle, wearing an Akatsuki robe just like Tobi.

"Heh."

* * *

Kenshin: And that ends this chapter. Next time, Sasuke fights Deidara and Suzaku meets Naruto. The two then fight, before a mysterious black masked wolf steps in. Later, Naruto sees Sasuke once more, and the ninth sword is unleashed.

Yusei: The what now?

Kenshin: The ninth sword. Let's just say if I told you, you would try to stop him. Oh yeah, if you didn't notice, Sasuke's outfit is based on Sol Badguy.


	21. The Soul Sword

_**Naruto and The Water Princess**_

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, One Piece, Fairy Tail, or Static. I think there's more, but I can't remember.

Kenshin: In this chapter, Sasuke faces Deidara…this also makes me wonder, why does Deidara want to kill Sasuke?

Yusei: My guess is he knows about Orochimaru's obsession with the Sharingan and can't seem to wonder why he would get himself killed over that Uchiha. He probably also wants revenge on the Uchiha because of his fight against Itachi.

Kenshin: Oh yeah…he did fight Itachi in the past. Maybe he wants to test himself against Itachi's little brother. In addition, Naruto battles against Suzaku, and meets Sasuke.

Manabu: Next chapter we'll be showing brand new omakes, that aren't just continuations or such. Or maybe we'll show more of Sasuke dreaming about Naruto doing his mom.

Yusei: Hey, do you know that's a song?

Manabu: What?

Yusei: Yeah, it's called 'Doin Ya Mom'.

Manabu: ...what kind of *bleeped for your listening pleasure*

Omake-

"Let me go, damn it!" Naruto curses, after being thrown into a tool shed. Samui crawls on top of him while Karui locks the shed. "What's with you two?! I gave you the information, now leave me alone!!"

"Oh no. There are some more things we need out of you, like…" Karui pauses at the end trying to think of something. In actuality they forgot what he told them about Sasuke, having become obsessed with his penis, and want to milk this for all they've got.

"Like where he could be…" Samui adds, backing up the dark skinned ninja.

"But I don't know where he could be!" Naruto replies.

"Oh, would you look at that, Samui-san? He's lying to us!" Karui states with a huge perverted grin on her face. Samui gains the same perverted grin, and then pulls his pants off.

"I see. I guess we'll have to 'jerk' it out of him." Samui takes her panties off and begins to rub her junk on his already erect rod.

'What's with women these days!?' – Naruto

* * *

_**Chapter 21: The Soul Sword**_

Sasuke Uchiha glares ahead at the ninja who attacked him, the explosive artist Deidara. Seiryu takes a minute to sniff the air, and says to Sasuke, "That blond man over there reeks of explosives."

"Looks like that guy over there has some skills!" Tobi says from where he's hiding.

"Heh. I still don't see how Orochimaru could want someone like you." Deidara states, glaring at the Uchiha with a grin. Sasuke stares back with fierce eyes, even though they were the Sharingan. "Ooh, what a scary face you got there! I'll have to apologize to Itachi-san later."

Before any of them realized it, Sasuke dashes towards them with Decalogue drawn. With his speed he easily reaches Deidara and Tobi. The blond Akatsuki ninja jumps up into the air to avoid him, but Tobi receive a clean cut through his stomach. He falls down to the ground.

"First off, it seems you can't shut up. So I'll ask you some things about Itachi, now that your partner is out of the way." Sasuke states, staring at Deidara who lands in a tree. But before he could continue, his eyes turn back to Tobi's body, who mysteriously stands back up.

"Oi Tobi, don't let yourself get defeated by that!" Deidara yells at the ninja below.

"But he was so fast! I couldn't keep up with his Shunshin!" – Tobi

'His blade clearly went through him…what did that guy do?' Seiryu thinks over as he watches Tobi. He dashes towards him as ice covers his body.

"AH!" Tobi runs away from Seiryu as he chases after him.

Meanwhile Deidara pulls out some round balls from his mouth hand, and tosses them in the air at Sasuke. After making the hand seal for the tiger he turns them into spider-like things. Sasuke stands there to receive the blow, and stands in the middle of all of the explosions.

"Ha. That takes care of him." Deidara says while looking into the smokescreen Sasuke was in. To his surprise, the ninja appears above him with Decalogue in hand, preparing to cut him down. Shocked, Deidara summons an extra clay bomb spider, and lets Sasuke take the explosion again.

Deidara slides across the ground as he glares at him. 'Why? Why doesn't the explosion phase him?!'

"Now, are you gonna start talking about Itachi?" Sasuke questions, glaring at the explosive expert.

"Guess I should try C2." Deidara digs into his bag and his hands devour the clay inside. He then releases it and summons a giant clay dragon, before hopping on top of its head. "Too bad Tobi ain't here. I could use his help."

"AH! That's Deidara-senpai's favorite technique, C2 Dragon!" Tobi shouts, looking at the impressive monster Deidara summoned. Apparently he somehow got away from Seiryu.

"The clay he makes can cause explosions, but only when it comes out his hands…" Sasuke surmises as he watches them. His eyes then go to Tobi, who hurries to the dragon. "Where's Seiryu?"

Out from the dragon's mouth comes out weird clay eggs. "Go get them, Tobi!"

"Yes sir!" Tobi says as he takes one egg after another and begins to bury them.

'Will he be making explosions, or fly with it?' Sasuke thinks as he tries to work out his plan in his head. But he wouldn't focus on it though because he has to dash quickly towards Deidara with Silfarion registered.

"Who's there?!" Yamato shouts, turning around to spot someone coming out from the shadows of the forest. Suzaku stands tall as he walks over to him, his eyes glaring at the group before him.

"The Demon Master Vermillion Sparrow of the Southern Star; Suzaku!" Suzaku says, holding his hands up to initiate a jutsu. Naruto guards himself as he prepares himself, drawing the Twilight Star and holding it with both hands. Hinata and Yamato both get into their stances as well. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu: Nanashi Renchuu!"

Out from the many crevices made up in their surroundings, those same red creatures rise up and take form. Hinata gasps when she sees them, saying, "These are the same ones as before. He must have summoned them."

Suzaku then folds his hands into the Dragon sign, and speaks, "I'll finally make you pay for what you did to me! For making me out to be a fool, and for making Konoha worship a demon like you!"

"Now hold up a damn second… Who the hell are you?!" Naruto curses, pointing his sword at Suzaku.

Suzaku, no, at this point his real name should be used, Mizuki smiles in a crazed way, the kind you would find in a psychotic serial killer or Gekko Moria, as he leaks more of his chakra from his body. Suddenly, a dark red gorilla-like monster appears in a puff of smoke towering above Mizuki, causing everyone to back away as it pounds its chest in anticipation. "Surely you remember all about me, right? Your former academy teacher?"

"…No." Naruto says with a blank look on his face. Mizuki falls headfirst to the ground at what he said.

"Naruto-kun, I remember this person; that hair, those eyes, even his voice…he's Mizuki!" Hinata says, looking at Mizuki in fear through the use of her Byakugan. Mizuki picks himself up and grins, as he looks at them, glad that someone finally remembers him.

"…No. Still don't remember him." Mizuki falls to the ground again, this time joined by Yamato and Hinata who slightly trips before catching herself.

Yamato quickly regains his posture and tells Naruto, "Mizuki use to be a Chunin of the Hidden Leaf. His license was expelled when he tried to get you to steal the Forbidden Scroll from the Hokage. He then tried to kill you and Iruka-san when he was found out but you stopped him thanks to Taju Kage Bunshin no Jutsu."

Naruto takes a minute to think about all this, and then it hits him, like a static shock. "That's right! You're the ramen hating loser who tried to frame me!"

"You remember me for…never mind! At least you know who will be killing you!" Mizuki shouts as his holds his right hand out. The Nanashi Renchuu bring out forked staffs and begin their attack. The giant ape stays back for the moment.

"Chromedread!" Naruto summons the diamond sword and strikes one down easily, but at that moment another one jabs their staff at him. He injects electricity around his hand and grabs it easily.

Unfortunately they start working together, by having one group distract Yamato and Hinata while the others chain down Naruto, with chains that they have to wrap around his arms and restrict his movements. Two more Nanashi Renchuu come up to stab him in the chest.

"Quit playing around!!" Naruto shouts, using his bloodline to send a hundred thousand volts of electricity throughout his body. The shock courses through the chains and shocks the red creatures binding him. The ones who approach him to try and impale him touch his body and receive the same current.

After this, he utilizes the strength he has been given with his electricity and heaves the monsters into the air. Naruto then spins around and slams then into the ground, and releases a Tenryu no Hoko from his mouth, finishing them off for good.

"So cool! Naruto-kun is so cool!" Hinata comments while blushing, after finishing off two Nanashi Renchuu with a Kaiten. Yamato stomps on the head of one, and glares at Mizuki.

"If you're going to kill Naruto you need allot more than a nameless bunch of weaklings." – Yamato

"Is that so? Then, how about this guy? Kill those three, Makkango!" Mizuki commands, ducking into the forest to keep him hidden. The giant gorilla roars and charges in.

"Makkango? Isn't it a gorilla?" Naruto asks Yamato, looking back to him in confusion. He got confused because 'kango' reminds him of diamonds, and not Congo.

"Look out, Naruto!" Yamato says, summoning wood stakes to wrap around the gorilla's arms. These don't bind it for long because with its sheer strength it easily breaks them off. "I guess that won't work."

"Solar Sword: Shining Angelus!" Naruto shouts as he dashes towards the gorilla with his light saber ready. He cuts down on it, making a clean swipe, and forces the oversized ape to disappear. 'Whoever that guy thinks he is, he can't beat us with numbers and power.'

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" They hear in the forest. Out from the darkness of the trees appears a large, orange, two-headed dog. It charges after Naruto, preparing to tear him to pieces.

"It's a dog now!?" Naruto summons a gust of wind to blow himself up in the air and avoid its jaws. He then calls forth his saucer and flies out of range. 'They really are after me.'

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata calls out, having been knocked away by the creature landing before her. It then jumps up into the air to attack Naruto, but Yamato summons a wooden hand to crush it back into the ground. "Yamato-san?"

"Naruto, go find Mizuki! We'll take care of this!" He says to the blond ninja in the sky. Naruto nods to Yamato, and heads into the forest in search of the guy.

Using his dragon nose he could find Mizuki without much trouble. After being around him earlier he caught a bit of his scent. That would be enough to track the summoning master down.

He slowly reaches the source of the scent, and finds Mizuki flying with a large mutant bird underneath him. Naruto holds his right hand up and releases electricity, shocking the creature and dispelling it. Mizuki lands on the ground, but Naruto closes in and strikes him with Gilgamesh. Suzaku collapses to the dirt floor facedown.

"You were with that Hao guy back then right? Where's Sasuke?" Naruto asks, glaring down at the fallen former Konoha ninja.

"Unfortunately we're not with Hao anymore. We're all free from his control, thanks to Sasuke." Mizuki says as he picks himself up. He glares into the blond's eyes as he lowers himself to his level.

"You guys all follow him now? Even Honatsu?" Naruto asks, remembering the fire dragon that tried to kill him back then.

"Honatsu is more than willing to help Sasuke with his goals, as well as the rest of us, if he can help accomplish our own." Mizuki's words cause Naruto to think more about his friend Sasuke. He still can't figure out how he could become someone like this. "Sorry, but Sasuke won't be going back to Konoha, and neither will you. Now fall before my Kekkei Genkai, Mashoukan! (Demon Summon)"

"Mashoukan?" – Naruto

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu: Mazoku Yori! (Demon Clan Armor)" Instead of a monster appearing from thin air, a golden chest plate pops up. Mizuki quickly places it over his chest, and it activates; his legs gain golden black armor, his forearms and hands gain golden blue armor, and his face is encased in a full body helmet with red fluff dripping from his shoulders. A large silver trident appears in his right hand, throwing off the color scheme. "A thousand clones won't save you think time!"

Mizuki dashes towards Naruto and swings the bottom edge of his staff at him. Naruto bends over to duck his strike, allowing Mizuki to follow up with a diagonal swing upward with the trident end. Naruto twists himself to the left to avoid it, effectively keeping up with his assaults. Mizuki then swings horizontally at Naruto, but he blocks this time with his sword Chromedread. He then pushes him back and strikes his stomach area using Gilgamesh.

But once it strikes his body all that comes out is the sound of a clang, and no explosion. Naruto grits his teeth in shock, knowing that the only way that would happen is that he struck metal. 'Damn! Gilgamesh doesn't work on metal!'

"An opening!" Mizuki swipes his trident sideways at Naruto, about to decapitate him. Naruto ducks under the blow and flips backwards to avoid him. Mizuki continues charging forward, prepared to pierce through him this time.

"Take this!" Naruto holds his hand out and sends electricity to him. With it he can control his body using electromagnetism, and send him flying. But, as it hits him, the boy realizes something is up, because Mizuki is still coming. "Huh?"

"Die!" Mizuki stabs at Naruto with his trident's blades, but he luckily blocks it with his Gravity Sword. He only receives a scar on the left side of his chest from the main blade of the trident.

'What's going on? I should be able to control his movements!' – Naruto

"This isn't just any metal; this is insulated gold. You won't be able to damage my abilities with anything!" Mizuki taunts, kicking Naruto away. He falls to the ground, gripping his wounded area. He could feel the Kyubi's chakra beginning to heal it, but it is slower than normal. Mizuki lifts his trident up to pierce him completely.

Naruto rolls out of the way to avoid him and crawls on all four. He opens his mouth and fires a hurricane from his mouth, shouting, "Tenryu no Hoko!"

Mizuki receives the hit, but doesn't feel anything. This could contribute to the fact that since he's armored he is too heavy to be blown away by wind alone, and he is protected from being carved to pieces by the tiny blades of wind associated with wind techniques. He laughs as he looks into Naruto's eyes. The boy begins to think of a way out of this.

Mizuki comes charging at Naruto, giving out a war cry as he rushes. Naruto brings forth the Dragon Sword, and fires twin flame bullets at the summon ninja. He holds his hands up and summons a large bear-like creature, just like the one from before, and has it receive the blow. Naruto grits his teeth in anger, mad that he would go through such lengths to take him out, and fires a few more at him.

As the bear vanishes from those last bullets, Mizuki leaps up into the air and descends below to Naruto. The blond ninja hops up into the air, and flies off with his saucer, which had flown in jump in time to save him from Mizuki's swing. 'I need to come up with a plan. I can't just use my normal techniques on him.'

"Hey, where are you going freak?!" Mizuki yells as he chases after him. Even while in that get up he can keep up with him.

"Oh, look who's talking! At least I don't have a strange sense of fashion!" Naruto yells back as he flies away.

"Well I may be a freak, but at least I'm not a coward! I never ran scared when you struck me down with those clones of yours!" – Mizuki

'The only thing I'm scared of is having to rely on that thing's power.' Naruto says in his head as he sheaths his sword away. He then holds his right hand up and forms the Rasengan. 'If Tenryu no Hoko had little success, then maybe a wind attack done at point blank range would work.'

Naruto turns around and releases a lightning bolt from his right hand towards Mizuki, but he blocks with his trident. Naruto then charges in, using electricity injected to his feet to increase his leap. He then jabs his Rasengan into the golden ninja's chest plate, but when Mizuki leans to the right he causes the spiraling sphere to strike the side of his left ribs.

The attack sends him spiraling away, and destroying a set of trees he flies back into. Naruto slides across the ground as he faces Mizuki, keeping himself up with his hands. Mizuki comes charging out from the impact site towards Naruto, his trident ready to finish him off.

"This time I'll kill you for sure!" – Mizuki

"Juuken Gattai," Naruto whispers as he dashes towards Mizuki. He draws the Twilight Star and holds it with both hands. The slightly deranged member of the Yontoushin swings at Naruto with all his might. Naruto slides underneath his trident and leans his head back. With both hands on his sword's hilt he swings horizontally, cutting into the section where his Rasengan made the most damage; the left side of his ribs.

Naruto falls forward while holding his left cheek. That's where he received a deep cut from the trident. In his other hand is the Alchemic Sword Gilgamesh. Back with Mizuki, dark fumes appear on certain parts of his body within the armor, and set off as a series of explosions. Blood also falls from where Naruto cut him. "Lunar Napalm."

The armor around Mizuki disappears, and he falls to the ground covered in his own blood. Naruto turns back at Mizuki, slowly breathing in and out. That attack affected him as well, as the burns on his hands are evident enough. 'That one is still trouble to control. It releases dark matter that sets off explosions. I still don't know how to control it to release slashing shockwaves, or set off the explosions right away.'

"Not yet…I've yet to lose…" Mizuki mumbles, turning around to face Naruto. He holds his hands out and crawls towards Naruto, his legs having given out on him from that last explosion. Naruto stands back up and turns to Mizuki, awaiting the light blue haired ninja to reach him. "I won't lose to you again!!"

"Mizuki…" Naruto runs towards Mizuki, avoiding the thrust of his trident, and knocks the weapon out of his hand with his katana. His sword also falls from his possession. "Stop! I'm not going to fight you anymore!"

"Then you'll just leave me here to suffer the humiliation of losing to you, and living through it!?" Mizuki questions him.

"That may be, but I have no intention of killing anyone. I promised to never kill anyone, no matter what they do to me." Naruto says to him. Mizuki reaches his right fist out to him to punch him in the face, but Naruto grabs his wrist and lifts him up to his level. "Now, where is Sasuke?"

"SHUT UP!! YOU ARE-" Before he could finish his words, he suddenly pushes Naruto out of the way. His chest quickly blows up, accompanied by torrents of blood. It spills on Naruto's face and body as he looks at Mizuki fall in horror. He knows for a fact that Mizuki saved him intentionally, from suffering the fate he did.

"Mizuki!" – Naruto

"What a shame." A voice speaks out, as someone walks into the forest they are within. Naruto looks back and sees a man surrounded by darkness approaching. He couldn't see much of his body, but there exists the coat tails of his jacket, what looks like a crescent moon on his back. Another clear sign are the glowing yellow eyes he possesses. "That was supposed to cut you both down."

"Who the fuck are you?!" Naruto curses, glaring at the man with anger. He comes out from the darkness brought to him by the trees, and Naruto could see he has a black wolf mask on. He also has a leather jacket and pants on, and what looks to be a black sword shaped like a crescent moon.

'So this is the power of the Kyubi Jinchuuriki…' He thinks as he looks at the young boy. His mind wanders off to the first time he's seen him.

_Flashback Jutsu_

_"Rairyu no Kaminari Punch!" Kyubi's strike blows Haku through his mirrors, and causing him to skid across the bridge like a rubber-ball. The demon then dashes towards Haku's electrified unconscious body, holding the Twilight Star in its Chromedread form. It would seem he plans to end Haku's life once and for all._

_And he would have, except the moment he could see Haku's face, and the sadness and pain already inflicted upon him, Naruto stopped himself from continuing. Naruto slowly calms down, which causes the demon chakra to recede back into his body. He falls to his knees after stopping himself, and begins to gasp for air. Even though his eyes have returned to normal and the demon chakra has left him, his teeth are still sharp like a reptile's._

_"What…just…happened…" Naruto asks himself. He slowly gasps for air as he tries to grasp the situation. "I remember fighting against that guy, but then things started to go a little dark for me-Hey!"_

_Naruto then realizes that the guy he was just fighting is at his feet. "What's he doing there…wait, Sasuke!"_

_Back with his friend the duck butt haired ninja slowly opens his eyes, the Sharingan eye reverting to normal, having been brought back to life from Naruto's electric powers._

_Elsewhere on the open sea, a man with a black wolf mask has watched the entire battle take place. As Sasuke gets himself back up he makes a 'humph' sound, and walks away. His figure disappears as he sinks into the sea._

_"WHAT?! You still haven't found it?!" Hao yells at Moka, kneeing her in the stomach. She falls down onto her knees, holding her abdomen in pain. She is in position to strike back at him, but she could never bring herself to harm her master; after all, he gave her a reason to live._

_"I'm sorry, Hao-sama. The Kyubi hasn't shown up ever since it attacked Konoha." Moka explains, hoping to calm his blind rage. He always gets like this when his plans go array._

_"Damn! If it hasn't shown up in its usual hiding spots then it must have been placed into a Jinchuuriki." Hao surmises, realizing that that might be the case._

_"It has, actually." Someone says to them. Hao turns to the entrance of his hideout and spots a man enshrouded in the darkness of the room. But you could clearly see some gold on his robes. Beside him is the man with the black wolf mask._

_That same masked man steps forward, and says, "The Kyubi Jinchuuriki has been spotted as a Konoha Genin. He goes by the name Naruto it seems."_

_"Is that so?" Hao smirks a little as he looks away. He spots Sheji pouring his favorite beverage, sake, and snags one of the cups. After drinking it down he releases a gasp of air, and says, "Then we'll begin the plan. We can capture the boy and extract the demon from him. Moka, prepare the Yontoushin; we're going to Hoshigakure."_

_"Yes, Hao-sama." Moka says, sighing in relief at his new demeanor. Now that he's cooled down she doesn't have to worry about him releasing his anger on her. The two leave the room and head out._

_With them gone, the golden man turns his head towards the man with the wolf mask. He could see in his glowing golden eyes that there is something else that is grasping his attention. "What's wrong, Rouki? You look as if you got something on your mind."_

_Rouki pauses a little to stare at away from his true master. He then walks over to the other end of the room, and says, "Allow me to be frank; I've seen the Kyubi Jinchuuriki's power, and I'm thinking of attacking him. I came by to let you know."_

_"Huh? Since when do you ever come to me to report who you're going to kill?" He questions in a cocky tone. That person then walks over to the black clothed person. "If you want to entertain yourself by killing others then just do it. It's not like the beast won't reincarnate years later."_

_Rouki releases his arms from around his chest, having his black leather slide along more of it. After pausing for a moment he then turns around to the side, looking at the golden man while a little confused. Of course, you couldn't tell because he's wearing a mask. But even still, his words bring a little surprise to Rouki. "The Kyubi is the strongest form split from the original demon, even holding its memories and closest form. The Jinchuuriki holds that power as well."_

_The golden man laughs a little as he says this, and says, "So what?" He then walks over to Sheji and his delicious sake, while stating, "It's true the Juubi is the only thing that can entertain and challenge me, but now that it's the moon the world is boring again. Even its offspring are no fun, and that's why we're working on Hao._

_"Besides, our only real obstacles were the Uzumaki humans, but that's why Madara sent the Kyubi to Konoha in the first place, to finish off the last one. With them gone, no one can get in the way of my fun." He finishes, sitting down beside Sheji and taking a cup of sake._

_"I see…so you have nothing planned." Rouki says to him._

_"Huh?"_

_"W-what? What is the matter, chicken?" Sheji asks, a little confused as to what's going on._

_"No, never mind. I thought acting on my own this time would cause trouble, but it seems I was worried over nothing." Rouki says as he walks off, disappearing up the steps. He continues until he reaches the outside, his crescent blade gleaming in the light. Rouki then chuckles a little to himself._

_"For someone like him, he really should pay attention to certain hidden facts." Rouki stands in the middle of a forest, and grabs holds of his black weapon. He glances over its clean edges and marvels at its beauty. "It surprise me that he isn't aware of it… Eh, there's no need for me to tell him. That would just cause problems for me."_

_End Flashback_

"Allow me to introduce myself. I think at least you should know about my name. I am Gerosenshi Rouki, a servant of Hao-sama. Under my orders I have to eliminate all of Hao-sama's traitors. This fool is one of them." The wolf man says, pointing down at the dead man below. He walks over to him with a grin on his face, and lifts Mizuki's body over his shoulders.

"Hey, put him down!" Naruto shouts, standing back up to face him.

"You are showing compassion, to someone who tried to kill you a few seconds ago?" Rouki questions the blond boy.

"That may be so, but he's still a human being. He still worked for you guys!" Naruto answers. He then charges at Rouki, electricity sparking around his fists.

"My orders weren't to kill you. You are, after all, an important factor to his plans." Rouki states, drawing his crescent sword and turning to face Naruto. The lightning dragon slayer strikes with Kaminari Punch, but Rouki easily dodges his punch, including the follow up, and slashes at his back. This leaves a scar on his back, and takes him down to his knees. Even with these injuries he glares at Rouki with a fierce look in his eyes, and red fumes leak from the blade of the Twilight Star. "That's a nice look you got there. I hope to see you again, as a worthy opponent."

The wolf man walks off into the darkness of the forest, disappearing without a trace. Naruto shouts, "Get back here you bastard!"

"Naruto!" A voice shouts out. Kakashi lands behind Naruto, along with Kiba and their respective animals. "What happened?"

"Naruto, what happened to you?" Kiba asks, being curious about it as well.

"…It's nothing…did you find Sasuke?" Naruto asks, looking back at his two comrades.

"Well…"

Before either of them could say anymore, an extremely loud explosion goes off elsewhere in the forest. Naruto, Kakashi, Kiba, and everyone else who heard it could tell it was close by. By that it clearly means it is in the area.

Elsewhere, Sasuke appears within a cloud of smoke, accompanied by a giant wolf. It falls to the ground sideways, covered in burns and blood. Sasuke looks pretty fucked up too. The wolf disappears in a puff of smoke, leaving the badly beaten Uchiha alone.

"Sasuke!" Seiryu calls out, dashing to his side from out of the forest. 'He teleported himself away from the explosion, and shielded himself with the boss summon of the wolves.'

"Seiryu…what happened to you?" Sasuke asks him. He had to fight against Deidara all by himself when the ice dragon and Tobi left.

"I was dealing with that other Akatsuki ninja, but then I got caught up in that explosion. I was encased in ice so that lessened some of the damage." Seiryu tells him. Sasuke takes a good look at his attire, and could see he has a small amount of burns and scars on his body. He then lowers himself and lifts Sasuke up over him. "What happened to that other guy?"

"He's dead. That's all you need to know." Sasuke says, his Sharingan eyes reverting to normal. Seiryu then skates off with his frozen ice-skates. With them he could slide across the ground, without leaving any traces behind.

"Let's regroup. We'll need to rest ourselves before we find Itachi." The ice dragon tells the Uchiha as he continues to carry him away. They can regroup with the others and deal with their problem later.

Elsewhere by the gates of Konoha, a man can be seen walking up to the front entrance. The two guards who notice his presence glance at him, and become a little shocked at his appearance. They couldn't tell if the guy is half dead, or just some old guy.

He has silver spiky hair over his head, and his eyebrows, with purple empty eyes that look as dead as he does. He also has a rather skinny appearance, with his body being close to the point of exhaustion. It looks as if he hasn't eaten in weeks, which would be impossible because most people would die in that time. He also has blue torn up shorts and sandals, wearing a short purple cloak over himself.

"Oi, are you okay? What's wrong with your body?" The first guard on the left asks, looking at the approaching human before them.

He says nothing as he looks up at them, and they could hear the horrible growling sound coming from his stomach. It's so loud the noise can pierce their ears. He opens his cloak a little, exposing the Omega necklace hanging under his head. This reveals he is actually Yusei, the man who fought alongside Manabu before.

"I…want…to…speak…with…your…kage…" He says, before plopping to the ground. His eyes close shut as he drifts into dreamland. The two guards help him up frantically, taking him into the village to be treated.

After an hour of rest, Yusei wakes up in the village's hospital, aside a tray with a variety of food on it. It's most likely there for him. 'I guess they don't know…'

There is a knock on the door to the room, to which Yusei states, "Come in."

In the room steps Tsunade and Shizune. He blinks twice in confusion, asking, "Who are you two?"

"I am Tsunade, the Hokage of Konoha. This here is my assistant Shizune. You requested an audience with me, right?" Tsunade says, looking down at the half dead human.

Yusei sighs with glee as he realizes they've followed his orders at least. He hasn't seen the current Hokage of Konoha, since he hasn't come here in years, but he remembers the last one being a male blond. His mind then wanders off to Manabu, and the way he described a certain person to him.

"Thanks for coming. I was told there would be an Uzumaki Naruto here." Yusei says, sitting up in the bed he's in. This shocks them a little. He knows of Naruto from being told about him by Manabu. It's only right they would be shocked, seeing as him knowing about someone they are confident he has never met before would seem strange, and suspicious.

"How do you know about Naruto?" Tsunade asks, sitting down in a seat next to him. Shizune stands in a corner.

"I don't know much about him. I should though, since him and I are related." Yusei says, scratching the inside of his left ear.

Tsunade tenses up a little when those words entered her mind, leaving Shizune only surprised. That could only mean that Naruto has had a living family member all this time, and yet he still didn't end up coming to see him. No matter that good reason he may have had, it doesn't excuse him for letting Naruto live alone all that time. Tsunade then asks, "You're really related to him?"

"I guess so. If he's really Kushina's son then I guess he must be my nephew." Yusei says, flicking out ear boogers, or more known as earwax.

"I see." Tsunade walks up to Yusei, her right fist clenching tightly. She then rears her fist back and punches at him, practically blasting him through the wall. Yusei falls outside, flat on his back. Shizune's jaw drops in shock at her teacher's anger exploding. "HOW COULD YOU LIVE ALL THIS TIME WITHOUT BEING WITH NARUTO!?!"

"Ah, Tsunade-sama! Don't let your anger get the best of you again." – Shizune

Yusei stands up, feeling as if he didn't just get punched through a wall. Actually, looking over his body, including the place where he just got slugged, he doesn't seem to have any wounds or scratches on him. He just looks really pale and hungry. He then jumps up into the hospital room through the hole he came through, ignoring the stares everyone else outside was giving them. He sits down on the bed and yawns. "I guess his parents really are dead."

"What?" – Tsunade

"I never knew what became of Kushina or the rest of my family when I left Whirlpool 20 years ago. By then I was in hiding, making sure I never met with any human being again. It's all because of the forbidden technique of the Hadouryu Kekkei Genkai. I was expelled despite my best intentions, and prevented from staying around any humans." Yusei explains, turning his eyes to the tray of food that was brought to him. Since it's on the ground now no one would eat it now. "I haven't been able to enjoy food in twenty years, even though it's my dream to be a world class chef!"

"What are you talking about? Are you saying you can't eat food?" Tsunade asks him, walking over to his side. She's rather interested in what he did, and has lost her anger since it may give a good explanation on why he couldn't see Naruto.

"I am Ryusei Uzumaki, Kushina Uzumaki's little brother. But always call me Yusei or I'll break your nose. I am also a victim of the Hadouryu Kinjitsu: Joutenryu no Hoko. (Wave Dragon Forbidden Technique: God Dragon's Roar) It makes a dragon human like myself to the point of an actual dragon, making them surpass even a Jinchuuriki's powers, but it comes with a side-effect." Yusei explains, scratching the top of his head as he thinks about the complications of the Kinjitsu. "It cannot be reversed. Once one uses it they become a dragon forever; human food turns to ash, fluids don't satisfy, and the desire to kill becomes stronger each day. I've stayed alive so far because I kept eating fire and ice."

"So, you'll be dead soon?" Shizune asks, a little scared at how this is affecting him.

Yusei stands up and walks over to them, his eyes turning hazel green. He glares at Shizune and reaches out for her, but falls to his knees before he could grip her. His grumbling stomach could be heard, and being so close to it Tsunade and Shizune grip their ears to brace themselves for the painful noise it brings to them. The Hokage then asks, "Are you okay?"

"I'll be dying sometime soon, unless I eat what dragons do." – Yusei

"What…what do dragons eat?" Shizune asks, fearing what the answer could be.

"…Humans." Yusei's answer forces them both to back away. If he is telling the trust, then he has to eat the flesh of humans. That would mean he is on their menu. Yusei plops onto the ground, drool leaking from his mouth. "Of course, I can never bring myself to eat others. But I have to see my nephew…and…inform him…of the…the Dragon…ce…"

He falls asleep.

"I was so close in finding him too." Naruto says, walking along the road to meet up with the others. Kakashi, Kiba, Hinata and Yamato could tell he is still depressed about losing his friend, again, and having to run into Mizuki didn't help things.

"It's okay. We'll find Sasuke, and bring him back soon." Hinata says, hoping to cheer him up.

"Indeed, although it's strange. Mizuki had up and disappeared during that time. When did he leave Konoha? And how did he gain that new ability?" Kakashi questions as he tries to think of what could be going on.

The five ninjas soon reach their place of return, a cave hidden within the mountainous region of their surroundings. Surrounding the cave is a group of crystals, placed there long before they first came on the ground and above it as stalactite. It would be best to hide there and rest from that violent attack Mizuki sent out.

There, Naruto could see that everyone has gathered there, most of them damaged in their battles against the Nanashi Renchuu. After informing them of what happened, with Sakura being the most worried about Naruto, they turn in for the night.

Around 4 in the morning, Naruto decides to leave the group, going through the forest for some personal thinking time. He really wants to do so, with everything that has been happening; Mizuki shows up looking for revenge, and then that man in the black mask showed up. As he looked at that person, he feels a little scared. It almost felt like that guy's mask was his actual face.

As Naruto wanders aimlessly through the forest, he comes before a certain spot where he notices a figure clouded in darkness close by.

A figure with Sharingan eyes…

'Sasuke? No, maybe it's him…' Naruto says, looking ahead at the person while hiding in the trees. As that person comes out from the darkness, he could tell that it is really Itachi. While he begins to tense up, a bird with a bandaged left flies over top of him on a tree branch.

"Come out, Naruto Uzumaki." He says, looking directly in Naruto's direction. Knowing he's been found, the blond ninja comes out from hiding to face him.

"Are you here to capture me?" Naruto asks. Without waiting for an answer he throws three kunai knives at him, but they are all blocked and deflected by Itachi's.

"Not at all; I'm only here to talk to you." He replies, keeping a calm exterior. He stays like this even when the kunai transform into Naruto duplicates and dash towards him. Without his eyes leaving Naruto Itachi throws shuriken at the clones and destroys them.

"You think I'm going to believe that so easily from you!?" Naruto shouts at him. He knows about the Uchiha massacre that he caused, and that he's an Akatsuki member, so there is no way he could just listen to him. "Besides, I can easily overpower you in numbers!

"Not only that, but if I capture you, then Sasuke will stop his obsessive quest for revenge!" – Naruto

Itachi looks at him with a paused look on his face, knowing he saw this coming a mile away. Of course it's only natural; their original meeting involved the bloodthirsty shark Kisame. "Why do you care about my little brother? He's a missing ninja now."

Now it was Naruto's time to pause. He makes his reply by saying, "Because, I've been more of a brother to him than you have!"

At that, Itachi couldn't help but make a small smile, knowing his words have a little point. Naruto dashes towards Itachi, acting rash at the moment. Both of his hands collect electricity. Without warning, black crows come out from Itachi's cloak towards him. Naruto backs up and looks at them, but then notices one has the Sharingan in its eye. This traps him in Itachi's genjutsu.

Later, Haku rushes through the forest to look for Naruto. He is the first one to notice that the boy has left, and has gone out to bring him back. He finds Naruto face first on the ground, with Itachi before him. "Naruto!"

"What's going on? Isn't it your group's goal to kidnap me!?" Naruto shouts at him in a questioning voice.

"I'll be going; there is something more important I have to do." Itachi says, holding his right hand up. "If you run into Sasuke, tell him I am staying an abandoned Uchiha stronghold northwest of here."

He then explodes in a puff of smoke, leaving them to realize he was just a Shadow Clone. Naruto then picks himself up, using the Twilight Star to keep himself balanced. The fatigue he originally had disappears soon after, and he walks over to Haku. The ice user asks him, "What was that about? Wasn't that Itachi?"

"I know…it's weird." Naruto says, just as confused as his friend. The two then walk back to their resting spot.

As they travel, coming up to a clearing near a mountainous road, Naruto continues to think about Sasuke, and the people all around him. He sighs, thinking, 'This is hard for me to deal with. How could Sasuke join up with people like these guys?'

"Naruto." Haku speaks, bringing the blond out of his thoughts. "Naruto, why do you still wish to save your friend Sasuke? Even after he sides with someone like Mizuki?"

"All Sasuke wants is revenge on his brother. I have to somehow let him know not to obsess over things like that." – Naruto

"Can you really convince him to go back to being friends with you?" Haku asks. He knows full well that Sasuke is rather stubborn, especially when it comes to Itachi.

"Of course I can. Sasuke and I are friends, no matter what he thinks. Besides, I've got a way with words." He answers with a grin. It is true actually; Naruto's words have been able to convince and change many people. Gaara, Tsunade, even Samui have all changed their ways of viewing the world, and/or him, after being around the guy.

"Well, I can't say you're wrong about that." Haku laughs a little as he hears what he said. After all, it only makes sense for him to find it funny, seeing as he is one of the people changed by his ways.

Naruto's nose suddenly perks up, picking up a weird scent in the air. 'What's this smell? Fire?'

Suddenly, a large fireball comes blazing from the sky above down towards them. Naruto and Haku notice this just in time to leap away, as the fire razes the ground of its greenery. From above, two figures land in front of the two friends. The blond Uzumaki gasps when he realizes that one of them is Sasuke. The other person is Seiryu, the ice dragon slayer.

"Sasuke!" Naruto shouts, standing in position to face him. Haku holds up ice needles and throws them at Sasuke, aiming for pressure points on his body.

Seiryu stands in the way of it, and with quick movements he swallows them all. Sasuke then says, "Ice is useless against Seiryu, being a wielder of both of your bloodlines."

"He possesses the Hyoton and Hadouryu?" Haku says in a questioning tone.

"Then he's the worse person Haku can face." – Naruto

"Naruto, I'm glad I got to meet you. I have received information that Itachi and his friend are close by." Sasuke says, taking two steps towards him.

"He is? Why are you telling me this? Are you coming back to Konoha?" – Naruto

"Of course not! I won't focus on anything until I reclaim the honor my family has lost! Not until I avenge my mother and father!" Sasuke shouts back at him. Naruto flinches a little as he looks into his eyes, a little shaken at the darkness he could feel just by looking at it. "That's why I'm here; to fight you."

"What?" As Naruto shouts back, Seiryu tosses over a bracelet towards him who grabs it. The spiky haired blond ninja holds up the item, looking it over. "What's this?"

"Those are Chakra Negation Cuffs." Sasuke explains to him. He holds up one of his own, and places it on his right wrist. "There are some that while wearing, they prevent the user from gathering chakra during hand seals. These are advance ones, capable of completely negating chakra while in contact with the user. With these, neither of our bloodlines will activate, nor will we be able to use jutsus."

"What's your point?" – Haku

"Naruto, I challenge you to a duel. We will use our swords Decalogue and Twilight Star, and our kenjutsu knowledge and skills. During this event both of us have to be handicapped from using any other technique." Sasuke says, as darkness forms around his left hand. It then takes form in his palm, becoming the sword of ten dark forms Decalogue, in its Eisenmeteor state. "If you win this battle I'll be at your mercy. If not then you will be at mine."

"What's the whole point of fighting anyway? I'm sick of it all!" Naruto shouts, refusing to draw his sword.

"Because you are the only thing that stands in my way to reaching Itachi's level. I'll prove to both him and Hao that I am much more special than you." Sasuke says to him.

Naruto takes a moment to think about this. Sasuke is an honorable person. There is no way he would resort to tricks to get what he wants. But he couldn't rely on what he expects of his opponent, and should indeed prepare for the worse. On the other hand, this is the best chance he has for bringing him back. 'But there's still the Juuken Gattai. I used it against Mizuki, so I'm disabled…except for that one…'

"Fine. I accept your challenge." He says as he attaches the cuff to his left wrist. Naruto draws the Twilight Star, pointing it up towards Sasuke. He then rests it on his right shoulder with his right hand.

Haku double takes before glaring at Naruto. "What?! Are you out of your mind?! You can't just-

"Pests should stay out of the way!" A female voice shouts. Suddenly, someone comes up from behind Haku, and kicks him in the side of his head. He slides out of range of the battlefield. The ice ninja stands back up, but is halted by Genbu and Byakko.

"Naruto, don't accept the challenge! You're a ninja, not a samurai!" Haku says to his friend. He couldn't believe he is getting suckered into something like this.

Naruto turns around and glares at Haku. The ice user gasps when he notices something wrong with his eyes. They look soulless and empty, a big change from him normally having eyes that are full of life and joy.

"Don't worry Haku. I won't lose. Because," Naruto turns around to face his opponent, those soulless eyes still in his eyes. The Uchiha glares back at him, wondering what he is going to say next. "My strength is worlds ahead of his."

These words surprise both Sasuke's group and Haku, including the Uchiha as well. He didn't expect Naruto to say something like this, or at least like that. It's as if he's looking down at him, instead of just gloating to look cool. This enrages Sasuke, who despises being looked down upon by anyone, even a former friend like Naruto who has had a better grip on his dragon powers than the Black Flame Dragon.

"I see…fine then. You won't live to see the morning sun." Sasuke replies, gripping the Decalogue with both hands. He then dashes towards Naruto, indicating the start of the duel.

At that moment the rest of Konoha's 8 Man Squad has just arrived, their insight on where to go made obvious when that fireball landed. They could see Naruto engaged in battle with Sasuke. Kakashi makes the first move, revealing his Sharingan as he dashes towards them. Byakko stands in his way though.

"I figured they'd get in the way. Lightning Hound!" Kakashi uses his Lightning manipulation power to summon a rapid dog made of electricity to attack Byakko. She screams when she takes the attack head on, and Kakashi begins to pass her by.

But before he could slip by, she grips her right fist and punches him straight in the gut. This returns the full force of the attack and knocks him back a few feet. Sakura and Kiba manage to catch him before the impact could increase the damage. "Kakashi-sensei!"

Kakashi tries to get himself back up, but feels paralyzed from the power of the attack alone. 'She reflected my attack back at me? No…there must be more to it.'

"It's useless to hurt Byakko, because Byakko is invincible!" The white tiger taunts, sticking her tongue out at her. She then positions herself into a Muy Tai stance.

"Yeah, stand down. Things are about to get interesting." Genbu adds, turning his head to the side so he could watch the fight. At this moment Naruto and Sasuke are clashing swords with one another.

Sasuke swings at Naruto's left leg, which is positioned out, but the blond lifts it up quickly and stomps back down, allowing him to stab at the brunette. Sasuke ducks underneath and jabs up. Naruto blocks with his katana, and kicks Sasuke back, having him slide away. Naruto then rests his sword back on his right shoulder, holding the hilt with both hands.

"That stance again. Explosion!" Sasuke gets back up and summons the Dark Explosive Sword, and prepares to create an explosion on Naruto's body. Naruto lifts his sword up, and calls forth Gilgamesh, making an explosion that covers his senses from Sasuke.

Sakura blinks in confusion. "He transformed the sword? But I thought he couldn't do that because he used Juuken Gattai."

"Maybe he's gotten strong enough to overrule the time limit." – Kakashi

'Something's not right. What's he doing…' – Haku

"Take this." Naruto dashes out from the smokescreen while holding Kuro Getsuga.

"Silfarion!" Sasuke morphs the sword into the Dark Sonic Sword, and matches Naruto's quick strikes blow for blow. They stop for a moment and dash together towards the mountain hills, both their swords still locked together. Sasuke releases from Naruto and summons the Dark Twin Dragon Sword, believing he could defeat Naruto with twin blades. "Blue Crimson!"

"Sasuke," Naruto makes the Chaos Sword Final Arcana, and combats fire and ice with black and white lightning. In the chaos, Sasuke summons the Gravity Sword and prepares to slam it down on him, knowing the brute force of the weight would be too much.

"Gravity Core!" He yells, preparing to bisect Naruto in two. But the blond is better prepared, and slides away from the dangerous blade while using the Diamond Sword Chromedread. A piece of the blade has been broken off, but he easily repairs it.

"Is this the best you can do?" Naruto rolls on the ground, making distance between him and Sasuke, and summoning the Dragon Sword Omega Arts. He then fires an ice bullet at the ground, freezing the area around Sasuke's foothold.

"Mel Force!" Sasuke transforms Decalogue into the Dark Vacuum Sword, and uses its wind power to blow him towards Naruto. With zero friction below his feet he could easily reach him in a matter of seconds. In mid slide he shape-shifts his blade into the Dark Solar Sword, knowing its power would cut through Naruto. "Million Suns!"

"That won't work." Naruto says as he summons his Solar Sword Shining Angelus. Thanks to the light released from Sasuke's sword Shining Angelus activates, and allows him to perfectly block the opposing blade of light. "Surely you must have known a sword with the power of the sun can be blocked by the same power, right? Or maybe you're really too weak to fight Itachi?"

"What was that?!" Sasuke let's his anger get to him, which would normally increase the dark powers of his Decalogue. But Naruto also sees an opening, and slides the sword along the blade of Million Suns. Once it reaches Sasuke, he calls forth Gilgamesh and slams it in his rib cage. Sasuke is blown back down onto the ground, to where their battle first began. The damage he has received is a clear sign that the power of the chakra cuffs is working, or the Hadouryu bloodline is running low on him.

"Naruto, is winning." Sakura replies in shock.

"When did he get so good?" Kiba questions, a little surprised at how powerful he is.

'No…this isn't the Naruto we know. He seems…colder…' Hinata says in her head. It seems Haku isn't the only one who is worried about Naruto. It's surprising to her that Sakura hasn't noticed it yet.

Sasuke picks himself up and glares at Naruto with hateful eyes. Dark fumes release from Decalogue in response to his hate filled emotions. "I'll show you, Naruto! Ventus Crush!"

Sasuke stabs his sword into the ground, having his weapon transform into Mel Force. He then takes a step forward and swings along the ground, quickly switching to Gravity Core. This sends a large set of rock chunks towards Naruto, swirling in a vacuum wind. Naruto dashes into the attack, releasing diamond stakes from Chromedread to destroy the rocks.

"Face my strongest explosive art, Naruto." Sasuke lifts up his sword with his left hand, and has it transform into Explosion. "Bakuhatsu no Kenjutsu: Bakuenga Daikenkiri!"

(Explosive Sword Technique: Exploding Flame Fang Great Blade Cut)

Sasuke swings horizontally with Explosion, positioning his sword hand to the right. He then lifts his hand up and swings down while curving to the right. His attack is finished as he repeats the downward swing while curving to the left. A mark appears before Naruto, this being the kanji of Dai.

Suddenly, Naruto is trapped in a huge explosion, one powerful enough to blow away Sasuke as well. Hinata and Sakura cringe in fear of what has befallen Naruto, for something like that is too much for anyone to survive. As the smoke clears, they sigh in relief when they notice he is completely fine.

"An explosion made in mid air by forming the kanji for 'great', Dai. It's a good trick, but it's useless against a sword that cuts things that cannot be cut." Naruto says, holding up the Phantom Sword Tenchi in its blade state. He then transforms it back into its sealed katana form. "Come on, Sasuke! Is this the person who is supposed to be my rival!? You're nothing more than a useless fill in for your brother!"

Those words were the last straw; Sasuke lifts his head up at Naruto, exploding with rage. It is at this point that everyone begins to realize something is definitely wrong with Naruto. The dark swordsman comes charging towards Naruto, holding Eisenmeteor in his hands. "WHO'S A FILL IN FOR THEIR BROTHER?!"

"That's the only reason the people of Konoha worshipped a guy like you, because they wanted you to become another Itachi. And it worked, because now you're turning into him!" Naruto says, continuing his taunt on Sasuke's persona.

"I'M NOTHING LIKE THAT BASTARD!!" Sasuke lifts his sword up and swings down at Naruto. The blond transforms his weapon into Chromedread, and jumps back to avoid him. Sasuke continues his charge, prepared to cut the lightning dragon slayer into little tiny pieces.

Naruto stabs his sword forward using his right hand, aiming for his opponent's head. Sasuke moves to the right to avoid it, keeping his speed up to move forward, without giving Naruto any reaction time. But what Sasuke didn't realize until it was too late is that a long spike snaps out from the sword's edge. Should Sasuke continue, his head, between his nose and upper teeth, would be severed from his body.

Luckily, he sees this in time and spins out of the way. This unexpected move causes Sasuke to crash to the ground, leaving a scar on his left cheek from that spike. Naruto reforms his sword into its sealed katana, hoisting it over his shoulder. Sasuke looks up at Naruto with hatred, so much he seems to have lost any and all good feeling towards the boy.

"Don't give me that look, you useless fill in." Naruto says calmly, before kicking him away. He then holds his sword in front of him, gripped with both hands.

"Naruto, stop! You don't have to act this way!" Sakura says to him.

"Naruto, what are you doing? This isn't you!" Kiba adds.

'Byakugan!' Hinata activates her bloodline, and takes a look inside of the katana Naruto holds. She then gasps when she sees something coming from out of the blade, surrounding Naruto's body like a demonic aura.

'What is that? It looks like a falcon, or a lion.' Hinata surmises in her head. She could clearly spot what looks like a lion, or a falcon, over Naruto's body. It looks as if it's controlling his actions.

"I'll get you…I'LL GET YOU, NARUTO!!" With that, Sasuke slams explosion down on his chakra cuff, blowing it to pieces. With it gone his chakra is back and usable. Dark flames gather around Sasuke's body, making it seem like nothing but darkness surrounds him. "Enryu no Rekka Daizantou!" (Flame Dragon's Raging Flame Great Cutting Sword)

Earlier That Evening...

"HA!" Manabu shouts, swinging his sword horizontally at a large tree. His attack carves it in half, causing it to fall down. He then rests his sword on his right shoulder, it being the side he's holding his sword. "Wow, and with only one hand. Chakra is amazing!"

"You're doing quite well for someone who has only grasped the concept of using sage chakra alone." Fukasaku says to Manabu after watching him half that tree. "But, you still need to try and capture sage chakra without the oil. After all, outside of Myoboku-zan's atmosphere, that oil would evaporate instantly."

"I guess." Manabu says as he walks past Fukasaku.

"You know, I've been meaning to ask, but why do you hold your sword in that stance?" – Fukasaku

"It's my signature stance. By holding it this way I reduce arm fatigue. This is something I've always done when I trained with Naruto, but I forgot to explain it to him. He just picked it up from me I guess." Manabu says, stopping to explain to Fukasaku after he asked him that question. "Along with the ten swords of the Twilight Star."

As he tells him that last sentence, the old toad gains a little interested in this weapon. "Ten forms huh? What are these ten forms? How were they made?"

"…My old man made them to fight against a specific person, by using a jutsu that copies and stores another person's energy inside of him. But when he put them inside the katana of his choice, he didn't know what they would become. He didn't realize that the energy of eight different people, along with himself, would give birth to the Twilight Star. Of course he had to refuge the sword nine times to do so." – Manabu

"Eight plus himself? But that's only nine?" – Fukasaku

Manabu sighs as he thinks over the true meaning of those words. "There was a ninth being he used it on. They were two demons he met with on one of his travels. By copying it he was able to defeat them. But he didn't realize that each sword has their own personality, and never respond to feelings of revenge or murder. This goes for all forms, except for the ninth sword, which is made from the souls of the two demons. They draw on those emotions, to take over the user and devour souls to regain their physical bodies.

"The Soul Sword Edge Daemon." Naruto and Manabu say at the same time, just as a giant blade of dark flames erupts from Sasuke's body towards the blond. The sword transforms into a blood red and ooze green normal broadsword with spikes that look like feathers sticking out on the guard, and a formation on the bottom of the hilt that looks like fangs gathered together into a crown. On one side of the blade's guard is a lion's eye, while the other side has a falcon's eye.

* * *

Kenshin: And that finally brings this chapter to a close. Next time, Naruto meets his uncle Yusei, but not before Haku is stabbed through the chest by the ninth sword of the Decalogue. This sparks a hidden power inside of Naruto, that isn't the Kyubi.

Yusei: Will he become like me?

Kenshin: …No, the first one. Oh yeah: Itachi and Tobi appear too. A lot of things are going to happen next chapter. Three people will die.

Manabu: Now for the Twilight Star, and the two new additions, as well as some information on the inspiration of the sword. Back in 2005 TCM created Kenshin after reading Shonen Jump. There was a kanji lesson in there, and it told him about how a swordsman is named kenshi. He also learned that shin means heart, so he named his first original character Kenshin. He also wanted to give him a unique ability, something no one has thought up before; and that's when he came up with the idea for multiple transformations. He wanted Kenshin to transform into several armors, making more than one hero in a single package.

Kenshin: But then Ben 10 came out and stole his idea, so he had to think up a different plan.

Manabu: That's when he thought about the ken in Kenshin's name, and put that idea into the Twilight Star.

7th Sword: The Dragon Sword Omega Arts

Weapon: Gun Blade

Description: It is a black, gold bladed gunblade with katakana in gold written on one side of the blade. It says All Delete.

Abilities: Its main function is the ability to fire bullets of condensed chakra. By cocking the trigger back the sword fires flames that cause powerful explosions. Cocking it forward allows it to shoot ice that can freeze whatever it hits.

Weakness: The sword takes a chunk of the user's chakra to shoot two bullets. Luckily, for someone of Naruto's chakra level he won't have to worry about it much.

8th Sword: The Antimatter Sword Sakasa Ace

Weapon: Katana

Description: It is a silver katana with green lines running down the blade. The guard of the sword is designed to resemble the kanji for reverse.

Abilities: This sword constantly secretes venom from its blade. It is absolutely poisonous to the supernatural, but it does the opposite for living humans; it heals their wounds and restores their strength to top health, as well as unlocking their potential.

Weakness: After a quarter of a day has past, the sword's effect will release, and the user will need about twice the amount of rest they would normally need, three times if they were already tired when they receive the injection. After resting they return to normal.


	22. The Costs of Strength

_**Naruto and The Water Princess**_

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Rave, Fairy Tail, Static or One Piece.

Kenshin: In this chapter, which will most likely be our biggest, will involve Naruto breaking out of the spell of the sword Edge Daemon, and losing to Sasuke. You'll probably say you've seen this before, but you haven't.

Manabu: Also, Sasuke faces Itachi and his darkness begins to grow.

Omake-

"Hold it right there, Akatsuki!" Naruto shouts as he, Haku and Sasuke dash towards the forest in time to spot Hidan and Kakuzu causing trouble.

"Hey, it's the asshole we're looking for!" Hidan states as he points at Naruto. He then draws his scythe and prepares to fight him.

"I'll deal with the boy. You get rid of the other two." Kakuzu states, summoning two of his heart creatures from his body.

"You won't be getting your way anymore! Ninpuu!" Naruto makes a tiger seal with his hands, and spins the gyro wristband on his left arm. "Shinobi Change!"

"Ninpuu! Shinobi Change!" Sasuke and Haku say in unison, copying Naruto's actions. Their bodies begin to become surrounded by their corresponding element; Sasuke is earth and fire, Haku is water and ice, and Naruto is wind and lightning. Spandex suits materialize on their bodies from the elements, and they each stand side by side.

"The Sky howls, lightning rages. Enter Ziz! Soranin, Hurricane Yellow!" Naruto says, making a samurai dance and pose. He is colored in yellow.

"The Sea dances, icy waves jump. Enter Leviathan! Kairinin, Hurricane Blue!" Haku says, making an elegant Wing Chun stance. He is colored light blue.

"The Land trembles, fire singes. Enter Behemoth! Rikunin, Hurricane Red!" Sasuke says, making a kabuki dance and pose. He is colored red.

"Striking in the darkest of night, slaying evil, with a fashionable look," Sasuke, Haku, and Naruto say in order. They then clap their hands together and take a single step forward, shouting, "Ninpuu Sentai Hurricanger!"

"A sanjou!" – Naruto

Hidan and Kakuzu take a moment to look at the ninjas in front of them. Both their faces possess a blank look, totally and completely unreadable. Their eyes focus on Haku, and they immediately laugh. Hidan even loses grip of his weapon and falls on his back. "What the-what the fuck is up with that outfit!!?"

"Huh?" Naruto and Sasuke turn their heads to Haku, and realize that his spandex suit is made differently compared to theirs. This is mostly because their suits are designed for boys, and somehow his is for a girl. Naruto and Sasuke start cracking up too, leaving Haku to cover his skirt with his hands. Sasuke then says, while laughing, "Haku, why does your suit have a skirt!?"

"You look good in that, Haku-chan!" Naruto taunts.

"Shut up! Who made this for a girl anyway!?" – Haku

* * *

_**Chapter 22: The Costs of Strength**_

Sasuke's Rekka Daizantou continues towards Naruto, who holds Edge Daemon up with one hand. He yells as he dashes head first into the attack, the sword having long since convinced his actions. The blond swordsman lifts the sword up, and swings down at the flames, releasing a blast of energy that easily dispels the attack. The Uchiha's eyes widen in shock and fear.

'No! It's can't be! How is he so powerful?!' Sasuke says in his head as he watches the blond swordsman coming towards him. Naruto doesn't hesitate to cut him across his chest, leaving a humungous scar and ripping out lots of his blood. Some of the same blood comes out from his mouth as he coughs up in pain.

"We have to stop this battle. Naruto isn't himself!" Sakura says as she prepares to run head first into the battlefield. Genbu and Byakko stand before her.

"You shall not pass." The giant one says.

"You have to stop this fight! Otherwise," Sakura begins as she stops before them. She then turns her eyes to the fight, or more like slaughter, that they are all forced to watch; Sasuke is trying his best to stay ahead of Naruto, but even with the Sharingan he fails to avoid even half of the swings that were going to hit him. "Sasuke is going to die, and Naruto will lose himself."

"Is this the best you can do?!" Naruto yells at his former friend, slashing harder and faster than he was just a few seconds ago.

The fight ends when Naruto jabs Sasuke's throat and slashes where his right kidney is. He then kicks him in the area of said wound, forcing Sasuke to the ground; the match is Naruto's to win.

"I win." Naruto says, grabbing Sasuke by his throat and lifting him up. He then applies tremendous pressure to his fingers, allowing him to mercilessly and slowly crush his throat, preventing him from speaking. "You said it yourself; the loser is at the mercy of the winner, right? Unfortunately, there will be none."

"Gaah!" Sasuke coughs out, passing out from the pain as more blood leaks from his slips.

"Naruto, stop!" Sakura and Hinata call out. For once Hinata hasn't called him by the usual honorific, 'kun'. They both rush over to him, in hopes to stop the boy before he goes too far.

Naruto smiles as he hoists Sasuke up off the ground, and aims Edge Daemon to his neck. But before he could, Haku has managed to move past Seiryu and kick Naruto in the left side of his head. This sudden strike causes Naruto to lose his grip on the sword, and it reverts to its sealed state instantly. Hinata gasps when she notices that through her Byakugan she could see that the falcon and the lion have disappeared from around him, and breaths a sigh of relief knowing he is okay.

Naruto plops onto the ground backwards, the influence of the sword gone from his body. He falls backwards to the ground, cupping the left side of his head, while Sasuke falls unconscious. Hinata and Sakura manage to move past Byakko and Genbu, thanks to Shino and Kakashi distracting the two.

"Naruto!" Hinata says, leaning down on her knees to help Naruto up.

"ITA!! HAKU! Why did you kick me with spikes in your feet!?" He yells suddenly, his head bleeding and leaking through his fingers.

"He's back…" Hinata says, a small smile on her face. Sakura breathes a smile of relief, glad that he's not that monster anymore.

"You don't remember what happened?" Sakura asks him.

"No…I remember thinking about how to fight Sasuke…and then…" Naruto looks to the ground, and spots Sasuke unconscious and bloody. "Sasuke?"

"Naruto! What were you thinking using that sword?! If you couldn't control the demon chakra what makes you think you could control that?!" Haku shouts at him, grabbing his shirt collar.

"That sword…you mean Edge Daemon?" Naruto asks him. Haku and the girls nod after he says this, as the fight continued in the background. The four of them don't seem to notice Sasuke rising up. "I instantly gain the knowledge of every sword I unlock the moment I can use it. When I was able to use the Soul Sword I learned that it was made of the souls of two demons, making it unique amongst the other 8. I thought I might be able to have a better chance at using it for a little while before it took me over.

"I had used Juuken Gattai against Mizuki, and I couldn't use the other 8 swords without relying on the power of Edge Daemon. I thought I could use that power long enough to break the limit, but instead it used me to get back at the world." Naruto finishes, feeling sad as ever at having to use something like that. He promised himself never to rely on the Kyubi for power, but here he is making the exact same mistake and almost harming the people he cares about. It then leads him to wonder why did Manabu's father put demons in this sword, and where he found them in the first place.

"Well regardless, you still won. No one got seriously hurt, except Sasuke, and you kept your friendship alive." Haku says as he holds out his hand to Naruto. He takes his hand and is pulled up. Naruto's eyes widen when he looks behind Haku and the girls, and immediately pushes them aside with his wind power. He then receives a stab into his right shoulder, given to him by Sasuke.

"Sasuke!" Naruto mumbles, pushing Sasuke off of him. He then gasps when he notices something off about him. The sword he is holding in his left hand also adds to his bad vibes. "That sword…"

"This is the biggest humiliation in my life…" The Uchiha says, glaring at Naruto with pupil less eyes. The sword he holds resembles the demon sword Naruto had moments ago. "You will pay for this, Naruto Uzumaki!"

'Does that sword have a monstrous form like my own?' – Naruto

"I will not forgive you…for dishonoring me! You will regret it!!" Sasuke shouts at Naruto. He lifts his sword with both his hands and swings it down at Naruto, a hateful growl accompanying it.

"Sasuke…" Naruto grabs the Twilight Star to counter, but receives a shock in the nerve system in his hand. In his mind an image flashes before him. There, the Kyubi is warding off a large silver falcon and a large gold lion. But he doesn't have much time to contemplate this before Sasuke slashes down on his chest, releasing a shockwave of red energy as well.

"NARUTO!!" Hinata gets behind him in time to catch the boy. There she sees a line blown open down his chest. The edges of the wound seem to have been burnt, as you could tell from the smoke. Naruto coughs up torrents of blood, slowly breathing in and out to keep himself conscious. Sakura hurries to his side and injects her healing chakra into him. "Naruto, hang on! Naruto!!"

"How dare you…HOW DARE YOU HURT MY FRIEND!?" Haku roars, sending an ice blizzard towards Sasuke. He blocks it with his evil sword, releasing dark energy from it.

"Die by the Dark Bloodlust Sword Sacrifar!" Sasuke swings his sword at Haku, releasing a powerful shockwave at him. This produces several wounds on his body, and sends him flying into the air. He then crashes down to the ground, but quickly picks himself up. "You can still stand?"

"Of course…wounds like these…are nothing!" Haku states, standing back up and running towards him.

Byakko takes a minute to stop and admire Sasuke's fighting, blocking Kakashi's Raikiri by grabbing his wrist. "Sasuke is amazing! He can use the Dark Bloodlust Sword Sacrifar without being controlled by it!"

"Of course. Darkness controls darkness." Genbu adds, stomping on the ground below him. The ground under Shino and the others rise up, taking them up 1 thousand meters into the air. "He's the perfect person to wield the darkness sword of ten forms; Decalogue."

"Beat it." Sasuke says, making one final slash at Haku's body. This blows him away into a boulder. The sword then reverts into Eisenmeteor as he walks over to him. "The loser of the match is at the mercy of the winner."

"Stay away!" Sakura warns him, halting her healing of Naruto's body to defend him. His eyes slowly open up, revealing a faint green tint in his normal blue eyes.

"Sasuke, don't end Naruto's life. You'll regret it." Haku tells Sasuke, standing back up slowly. He is currently using ice to move his legs.

Sasuke turns around and laughs at Haku. "That's the same thing the Kyubi said. What will not killing him do for me?"

"If you do, then I'll tell you where Itachi is." He replies, catching each and every person there off guard. Having met Itachi that time along side Haku, it is only natural that he would have to tell somebody sooner or later. But telling Sasuke would ruin their plan of capturing Itachi in the first place.

"Wait…don't tell him…" Naruto mutters, trying to stop Haku before it was too late.

"They know where he is?" Kakashi questions.

"Ha! What a bluff! You just want me to spare Naruto." Sasuke states.

"I do know. Naruto can vouch for me." Haku says, turning to his friend up ahead.

Sasuke takes the time to pause, and glares at Haku. He then places his sword down, and says, "Fine. You've got one minute to tell me where it is."

"Fine…Itachi is waiting for you at an abandoned stronghold close by. It's this way." Haku then forms an ice dagger, having it float into the air. He then has it point northwest, which would be in the direction they need to go.

"I see." Sasuke says with a grin, turning his eyes to where the dagger pointed. He then raises his right hand and flicks his fingers. This grasps the attention of Seiryu, Genbu and Byakko, who join his side. "As you wish Haku, I won't kill Naruto. If you're right then I won't kill him later on."

'Good. He still holds honor in his words.' Haku says in his head. He then rushes past Sasuke to reach Naruto, bowing down before him.

"Are you sure you want to do this? He killed Suzaku," Says Genbu to the dark haired ninja.

"I'm a man of my word. Besides, Naruto is too much of a bleeding heart to kill anyone." Sasuke replies to the black turtle. He then signals his team to move on, leaving them alone. His eyes dart to Haku though, and he walks over to him. "However…"

"Haku, why did you…" – Naruto

"Don't worry. I have a plan." Haku says to Naruto, in a whispering voice only Hinata, Sakura and the blond could hear. The ice user's head shoots up when he feels something digging into his left shoulder. The blood spills onto Naruto's horrified face.

"Your life isn't safe though." Sasuke says, pulling Silfarion out from his body. Haku turns around and looks at the Uchiha, noticing the marks of the Curse Seal are rising on his body. "This is revenge for killing me that one time."

'Revenge. Take revenge on everyone that hurt you. Fuel the darkness in your heart!' A voice says in Sasuke's head. At this point Sasuke cannot focus on anything at the moment, nothing except for his revenge; on Haku for putting him in that near-death state, which he was suppose to be over.

"Haku! Haku!" Naruto speaks as he tries to pick himself up.

"It's okay Naruto. You gave me a new life. It's only fair that I do the same…" Haku says to him, spitting out some of the blood gathering in his mouth. He then stands up, turning around to face Sasuke. "Sasuke, this is as far as you will go. If you end up living your life trying to get revenge on people, you'll become a mere shell of a man. It's not too late to step back."

"How the hell can someone who lived as a tool know about my pain!?" Sasuke then slashes across his chest with Eisenmeteor. Haku's eyes close up and he falls backwards unconscious.

"Haku…" Naruto whispers, watching his close friend fall close to death. His eyes almost immediately turn green.

"Haku! Say something! Haku!" Sakura cries, pulling him off of Naruto so she could heal him.

Kakashi sneaks up behind Sasuke in an attempt to disable him, but he sees Hatake coming and raises his right hand, surrounding himself in dark flames. He then disappears as the fire dies away, having joined up with his team of three. "Let's go. I'm sick of looking at these weaklings."

"Sasuke, stop!" Kakashi shouts at him. Shino assists by summoning his insects to block their path, but Genbu punches the air. This leaves a huge crack in the air, as if he punched glass, which releases a shockwave of wind at the bugs. Using this chance to escape, they dash further away from the Konoha ninjas.

'Come on, I have to save his life. Please let my experience be enough…' Sakura prays in her head, to whatever force may be over their lives. Even she sees Haku, who had tried to kill them when they were kids, as a valuable friend. Regardless of whoever is injured she never wants to see anyone die.

No one seems to realize Naruto's emotionless expression, or the change in his eyes. They don't even acknowledge him, until he stands up. Hinata takes this chance to say, "Naruto, stay down! Your injuries haven't healed yet! Naru-

"Sasuke…" Naruto mumbles, his teeth gritting together in anger. He even clenches his fists together, as a violent wind builds around him. His skin begins to look different as well, almost as if he's gaining scales. Added to the chakra aura appearing around him, this makes him look like a humanoid dragon. "Sasuke…!"

"Naruto!" Kiba tries to reach out for him, but before he could get close, the ninja makes a single leap to where Sasuke left. The standing ninjas are blown back away by the gust of wind left behind by his exit. Hinata sees that the cuff he had around his arm has crumbled to pieces.

Kakashi quickly picks himself up, and dashes after him. "Wait, don't rush off and get into trouble!"

Meanwhile with Sasuke and the remaining Yontoushin, they are jumping over tree branches and making good time. Byakko asks Sasuke, while moving over the trees, "Why did you kill that boy?"

"Why do you care?" He questions, not noticing the incoming figure speeding towards them through the air at the speed of light. His eyes glance to the corner as he senses their approach. "What the hell?"

"SASUKE!!!" Naruto shouts right as he pounds the Uchiha in his chest. The sound of bones cracking could be heard even as Naruto's fist leaves his body. This assault doesn't falter for Naruto brings his other fist up and slams Sasuke in the cheek, sending him flying and spinning at the same time, into an oak tree. His back leaves a mark on the tree.

Genbu, Seiryu and Byakko stop and land on the trees below to face Naruto. The black turtle states, "It's amazing how he managed to reach us without his wounds…wait."

All the wounds on Naruto's body seem to have closed up, for not even the blood from earlier isn't present. The blond dashes towards Sasuke, preparing to finish him off. Byakko manages to get in front of him before he could reach the semi-unconscious Uchiha.

She grins as she prepares her signature stance and goes at him. "There's no point in hitting Byakko, because Byakko is-

Before she could finish, Naruto jabs her in the stomach and brings her down to her knees. He finishes her off by making a spin kick and knocking her square to the ground. Blood leaks from between her lips as she falls unconscious.

"Damn you!" Genbu and Seiryu prepare to take out Naruto, but receive a powerful electric shock released from both his hands.

"What…power…" Seiryu mutters as he receives the shock. He then falls to his knees in pain. 'This can only come from Dragonforce; a power only the true Uzumaki can use.'

"URAAAH!!" Naruto dashes towards Sasuke. He utilizes the strength of his electric powers to increase his starting jump, and his wind powers to push him forward.

"I was going to let you live on Haku's last wish, but now it's too late!" Sasuke heaves Eisenmeteor up makes his stance for Mel Force. But before he could unleash its power, Naruto's right fist punches it. The strike shatters the blade to pieces. Sasuke looks down at Decalogue, with the most surprised look on his face. "EH?!"

"URAAAH!!" Naruto snarls again, exposing his mouth full of sharp teeth. In a fist of rage Sasuke punches back at Naruto, and damages his fist on the right elbow the blond blocks with.

'Where is THIS strength coming from!? It's not the Kyubi's chakra; I would have sensed it!' Sasuke's thoughts are cut short from him when Naruto's third punch ends up slamming him into the ground face first.

"It's all your fault!! Why did you have to kill Haku!!?" Naruto makes out, kicking the Uchiha over so he would face up. He forms Rairyu no Hotengeki, which is made of blue electricity and is much more fierce than normal. "I thought when you broke out of that psycho's grasp that you would come back, that we could be friends again…but it's too late. I can never forgive you for what you did!!"

'Naruto…' – Sasuke

Naruto grabs his halberd with both hands, and lifts up to drive it down on Sasuke's skull. But two hands reach out and grab his wrists. His hatred diminishes when he sees Haku is one of the people who has stopped him, with the other being Kakashi. "H-Haku?"

"It's okay Naruto…you don't have to lower yourself to him." He says to the blond, a smile present on his feminine face. Naruto's body slowly returns to normal, with his scales, teeth and aura either disappearing or going back to before the power up.

"Haku! You're alive!!" Naruto dispels his electric attack and hugs his ice friend.

"Baka! Let go! I'm still injured!!" Haku complains, trying to get out of his grasp.

"Let's go now." Seiryu says as he grabs Sasuke and summons a mist of snow. This covers their appearance and allows them, Byakko, and Genbu to escape.

"Damn, they got away." Kakashi curses, upset that they would run off like that. It seems whatever Naruto did have them scared.

"Haku, I'm so glad you didn't get…" Naruto suddenly stops hugging him, feeling his body start to act a little weird. His wounds start to reopen, and he falls down to his knees, clutching his body. "I feel like crap!"

"Naruto! Why did those wounds come back?" Haku asks, noticing his injuries were the same as earlier, before he ran off.

Kakashi takes a moment to look over Naruto's skin, or just the skin on his face, a little confused at his appearing. He could clearly tell there were scales on his skin before he returned to normal.

Inside A Foggy Marsh…

Rouki wanders along the wet floors below him, his crescent blade on his back. He couldn't see much of the forest, but he could tell that this is a dangerous place to be in, for normal humans. Even ninjas won't want to know what lives in here. The black wolf masked man turns to his right, noticing a mucky pond with bones wrapped in white thread leaking from it.

He quickly turns to the left when he notices a powerful presence. There he spots a man in golden armor walking up to him. He couldn't see his face through the mist, but he knows exactly who it is. "Rouki…just what the hell are you doing!?"

"It's you…" The armored person dashes towards Rouki at surprising speed, and punches at him. The black wolf blocks the attack with his crescent blade. The force of the punch is enough to blow back some of the wind behind Rouki.

"It seems you've forgotten who gave you your powers. Your selfishness is getting in the way of my goals!" – Man

Rouki flinches a little. "Are you talking about the incident with Naruto Uzumaki? I'm more than enough to match him in battle. If you want someone to kill him then let me-

"DON'T BE SO IMPUDENT!!" He yells, interrupting Rouki's words. He then increases the power of his punch and blows Rouki back. He steps into the muddy water. With Rouki far enough away, the armored man fires a ray of electricity from his hand towards him, encasing him in a spellbinding circle.

Rouki feels incredible pain before grabbing the top of his head, dropping his sword in the process, and begins screaming in pain. He falls onto his knees and continues his screams, even as his mask falls off of his face. His real face, shown to be void of anything, is now visible for all to see, and the black leather and sword disappear as well, leaving him naked as a newborn baby.

"Don't come out for a while, Rouki." The mask levitates to him, who grabs it with his right hand. He then makes a brief chuckle, and further into the marsh.

As the golden man continues to step over the muddy ground that makes up this area, he makes out what appears to be a large spider web dangling over bamboo tree branches. Of course this isn't a normal spider web; its size makes it appropriate for holding even a tiger. Infact, there appears to be the skeleton of one hanging from the spider web, but that wouldn't make sense since tigers don't hang around in marshes.

Descending from the web on a silver thread is a beautiful black haired woman. She has very light tan skin with blood red pupil less eyes. The limited clothes she is wearing consists of dominatrix straps on the bottom, and a see through brassiere with a black widow spider ornament attached to hold up breasts as large as Tsunade's. She places her naked feet onto the cold, muddy ground, and stares at the golden man with great interest.

"It's rather interesting to find you here, especially after considering how boring I am." She says, showing a glare of hatred at the man.

He laughs heartfully. "I have no interest in apologizing. I've come to merely give you information; there is this someone I want for you to capture."

"Capture? Is it a man? Because I've been waiting to mate with a human for some time now. Of course," She begins, looking back up at her giant web. There she spots the many wrapped up caskets hanging uselessly in the air. One of them has the bones of a human arm sticking out. "Not many men have been able to pleasure me."

"Your first target is a famous woman in this country, the Godaime Mizukage of Kiri. By capturing her that will bring out your true target, a user of Metsuryu Mado. Once he's in your grasp, make sure he ends up dead." He tells the woman, glaring into her eyes.

"Metsuryu Mado, eh? So, an Uzumaki survived the Whirlpool massacre?" She questions, a little curious about thinking of this person. She eventually laughs hysterically. "So that means, they pulled a fast one on you, right!?"

"Shut up right now, or I will break all eight of your legs!" He yells, releasing a light aura from his body. "Just kill him!"

He then disappears as he turns around, vanishing into thin air. The woman smirks a little as she thinks about her objective, summoning four spider legs from her back and transforming her original legs into another set. 'I guess I have to go through with this plan, but only if he can't keep me interested.'

Further off in a raining city, a toad swims to the surface of a large puddle of water. It seems as if the rain has poured on forever. The amphibian opens its mouth, and out stretches a human arm. The arm then pulls the rest of its body out, revealing it to belong to the great Sannin Jiraiya. Jiraiya steps on top of the water, using his ninja skills to keep him afloat, and the toad slips into the sea.

"Well, infiltration of Amegakure was a success. That was too easy." He says to himself. His mind goes back to when he was last in Konoha.

He had discovered the whereabouts to Akatsuki's leader, someone they all call either master, or Pain. Tsunade wanted to make a plan to charge Amegakure, where he is hiding, and take him out, but Jiraiya wanted to go himself. It took allot to convince her, and eventually he did it over drinks.

After drinks he took her to a clearing in the park, and they discussed the possible candidates for the next Hokage, because Tsunade was so persistent in joining him; she really cared about him. Jiraiya then tells her that she is the only one capable of holding that title, even though Kakashi is a good choice and Naruto is slowly reaching that level.

They soon talked about Naruto's father Minato Namikaze the Fourth Hokage, and Kushina Uzumaki the Water Dragon Slayer. Naruto's powers and the majority of his jutsus are similar to those of Kushina, while his appearance, will, determination were the same as Minato. The boy truly does have his qualities.

Back in current time, Jiraiya continues walking over the water further into the village hidden in the rain. But as he does he has this weird feeling someone is watching him. 'Maybe they already know.'

Elsewhere In The Same Village…

A man with spiky blond hair quickly turns to the left. On his face are many piercings, and he wears the Akatsuki robes underneath him. A woman walks next to him, exposing her blue hair with a white origami flower in it in the light, or whatever light was available, and asks him, "Pain-sama?"

"Someone is obstructing my rain. Judging from his chakra… he seems very skilled." Pain says to his partner, walking further back into the room away from the rain outside. The woman stays close inside, making sure she doesn't get wet. "And just when I was about to raid Konoha too…"

_Flashback Jutsu…_

_"Deidara has died, using himself as a bomb." Pain says to the remaining illusions of Akatsuki. They are all on top of the statue's fingers, like always when they are on meetings._

_"Eh, oh well. Another one bites the dust. Who was his last opponent?" Kisame asks, showing no remorse for Deidara's death. Itachi seems to be the most quiet of them all._

_"Sasuke Uchiha. However, he was caught in the blast too." Zetsu adds, speaking with both his voices. Even after hearing this, Itachi remains silent._

_"Heh! He was so pathetic he had to take out his opponent and himself!" Kisame laughs._

_"Don't be that way Kisame. Deidara gave his life to rid us of a nuisance." – Pain_

_"Yeah, yeah…hey, are we missing someone?" Kisame asks, looking around for the remaining members left. With Deidara gone, he counts the leader, Kisame himself, Itachi, Zetsu, and that blue haired woman._

_"Tobi is gone too. Deidara didn't care who he got." Zetsu adds._

_"Aw man. I liked that guy; he made being in Akatsuki fun." Kisame states, a little disappointed at what has happened to the poor guy. "To think a scaredy cat like him couldn't get away in time."_

_"Anyone can fill in Tobi's place. Deidara, however, was a tragedy. I'll go, if only to pay respects to him." The leader, Pain, says, disappearing from the group. The last person to leave is Itachi, who joins them afterwards._

_After leaving the group, Pain walks over to a ledge, sitting on top of a gargoyle attached to the highest tower of Amegakure. He stares out into the city seriously, like a superhero about to take flight. At the moment it isn't raining, which seems rare in a place where it is called Ame. The blue haired woman that is his partner walks over to him, and says, "Pain, come over here. He's here."_

_This grabs the Akatsuki leader's attention, and makes him stand up from his spot. He then walks over to the woman, where he seems a man covered by the darkness of the room. He then asks him, "How was Sasuke?"_

_"Not bad. Hao did some good by giving him Decalogue. He also made extremely good use of the Sharingan. No doubt he shall surpass Itachi." The man says, holding his right hand up before grasping it. He then continues with, "The time is ripe; those two will be taking action soon, and he has surely prepared himself, so it won't be long now."_

_"Those two?" Pain asks him, a little curious as to what he could mean. He knows who it is that has prepared himself, but 'those two' are a complete mystery._

_"Hao will make his attempt at Naruto again. Now that he's lost his control over Sasuke he's more desperate than ever. That's why he went to that other person." The dark person tells them. Pain knows who Hao is, since he was a part of Akatsuki. He, along with another member, are the only ones who knows who this person truly is. But to mention that other person is just another mystery to him. "We have to collect the Kyubi."_

_"I'll send Kisame and Itachi to capture him." Pain says, since they were originally sent to capture him in the first place._

_"No. You will procure Naruto." The man says, looking dead into Pain's eyes. "Being the leader, you shouldn't fail."_

_"Me? Capture that kid?" – Pain_

_"Are you overestimating Pain-sama's abilities?" The woman questions the mystery person._

_"Uzumaki Naruto is not a kid anymore. He possesses a destructive amount of jutsus on his person, as well as a group of formidable allies; including Konoha, Kiri and Suna. He is also the last of what remains of the dragon slayers, and was strong enough to kill off two of Kakuzu's lives with a single attack." – Man_

_"There's no point in telling us about a child that has never truly killed; Pain hasn't lost a single battle." – Woman_

_"Hm, of course Konan. That's why I want you two to do it." He then walks to his right, noticing an Akatsuki robe hanging. He grabs it and wears the robe over his body. "I've said what I had to; tell the others to grab their remaining Jinchuuriki."_

_"I know." – Pain_

_"It won't be long now…soon all of our plans will be achieved." As he walks out into the light, the clouds from above begin to gather over Amegakure. It soon begins to rain over the village, hence its name. Suddenly, lightning strikes the ground, revealing the man in darkness to actually be Tobi. "The Sharingan's power, my power, Uchiha Madara's power will be as it should."_

_He then disappears in a spiral swirl, his right eye exposed through the hole in his mask as a Sharingan before he completely goes away._

_End Flashback_

"Sasuke-chan, how's your wound?" Byakko asks the young boy, noticing how badly damaged he is. Of course, she isn't much better. That punch from Naruto really screwed her up.

"Where did he get that power?" Sasuke questions himself silently while wrapping a bandage over his forehead. The huge wound on his chest seems to be the worse of them all, made when Naruto first struck him with that sudden power up.

At the moment he and the rest of the Yontoushin are hidden within a closed off cave. Genbu stands watch on the outside of the cave, being the least hurt of them all. How he got out of it better than the others is beyond even them. Even Byakko is still coughing from the damage she took.

The Uchiha picks himself up and begins to walk off. Seiryu grabs him by the shoulders, stating, "Sasuke, it would be best to wait until your wounds heal before going to see Itachi. Even with the super healing powers granted by Orochimaru's curse seal you need rest."

"I don't care! Itachi is close by! I have to reach him before-

"He's not going anywhere." Genbu tells them, interrupting the Uchiha. He glares at the black turtle with his Sharingan. "If Itachi told Naruto where he will be, just so you would tell him, then he's waiting for you. There'd be no point in rushing to your death."

Sasuke takes the moment to think about what he said, and sits down when he realizes that the giant is right. If Itachi is waiting for him then he can take the time to recuperate and get himself back together. He surely wouldn't be much of a match now. "Fine."

And with that Sasuke sits back down, grumbling under his breath. Seiryu also releases him, and sits down to bandage his own scars. Genbu meanwhile looks out so he could watch their backs. As he does he begins to think. 'Why did he give him those directions in the first place? It doesn't seem believable…although the Akatsuki have obvious reasons for doing what they do; Deidara, Hidan and Kisame were given a chance to cause destruction, and that was enough for them. Kakuzu was in it for the money. Two of them have obvious reasons, Zetsu wanted land, and Sasori wanted to expand his collection. And then there's Itachi, and who knows what goes on in that guy's head?'

Later That Afternoon…

Sasuke Uchiha is walking through a dark room, his eyes focused on what's ahead. Around his head and chest are bandages, clothed together so he could move without bleeding much. Behind him are his team consisting of Seiryu, Byakko, Genbu and Honatsu.

"Are you sure he said east? We're going into a cave." Honatsu questions the Uchiha as they continue inside. Sasuke ignores him and continues moving forward, having complete faith in Haku's words. He may be a ninja, and has had more experience in deception than Sasuke, but if he were lying his Sharingan would have picked it up.

As they go further in, Sasuke can spot out a person in the darkness of the cave. He calls out, "Who's there?"

The person opens his eyes and looks at Sasuke, revealing his Sharingan eyes. The younger Uchiha tenses up when he realizes that it's his brother Itachi, since only he would have the Sharingan and that figure. The dark figure comes closer into the light, revealing the person to be Itachi indeed.

"Have you grown at all?" He asks Sasuke.

"You're still the same as always…staring at me with those cold eyes." Sasuke says, looking forward at his big brother. A crow lands on the older one's shoulder. Itachi then chuckles a little.

"It's funny… Ordinarily you would rush in at me, screaming my name." – Itachi

"Heh. What would a jerk like you know about me?" Sasuke tells him. Itachi turns to the left and realizes Sasuke is behind him. "Enryu no Chidori!"

Sasuke sends out a blade made of dark flames that pierce into Itachi, sending him up into the ceiling. He then explodes, and falls to the ground. Sasuke walks over to his fallen brother, who stares up at him. "You have indeed gotten stronger."

Itachi's body releases crows, dissolving into nothing. Sasuke backs away in shock, wondering when he got caught in a genjutsu. Itachi's voice goes off, saying, "Come alone to the Uchiha compound. I'm sure Naruto has told you where it is…"

Sasuke remains silent as the birds fly away. He then walks further into the cave, knowing there is an exit on the other side. Byakko calls out, "Sasuke-chan, hold up! We can't just let you go alone!"

"I'm going alone, that is all. You all wait back at the hideout for me." The Uchiha says as he walks further into the cave.

Seiryu reaches out and grabs Byakko by her right shoulder. He knows she would try to follow him. As the white tiger looks back at the azure dragon, she sighs with sadness. "Let's go."

"Shiba, you don't tell us where to go!" Honatsu states, pointing at the ice dragon before him.

"It's Sasuke's orders, and his supercede yours." Seiryu tells the fire dragon. He then walks to the end of the cave, where they all entered.

Sasuke continues on the other side of the cave, until he comes to a clearing outside. He then sees Kisame standing on top of a tree, looking down at him. His shark-like grin appears on his face. "There you are."

"You're that shark guy…" Sasuke says as he looks at the blue ninja. He holds up his sword Decalogue, having summoned it from his left arm. He glares at Naruto with a paused look on his face.

"Itachi's up ahead at the abandoned stronghold. You'll meet him as long as you continue forward." Kisame says to Sasuke. The Uchiha jumps up into the trees, landing on the side and glaring at him.

"He better be." Sasuke warns him. He then uses Silfarion's speed to disappear, heading towards the place his brother is waiting in. 'I won't be able to hold the powers of a dragon for long. I'll be able to fight with them for about ten minutes.'

Sasuke eventually makes it to a large compound hidden near the mountains. He walks inside, noticing the place is rather locked up and deserted. He continues further into the building, ignoring the decayed look it sports. He eventually comes before a room that holds a throne, and sitting on it is none other than Itachi. Hopefully it is the real one.

"It's good to see you again, Sasuke. I hope your eyes are as good as I expected." Itachi says, in mostly a mock voice.

"My eyes are better." Sasuke tells him, taking a few more steps towards him. He hoists the Decalogue up at Itachi, and rips off the bandages on his head. These show that his wounds have healed, at least there. "They see your death."

Silence fills the room as the brothers stare at one another. Itachi's eyes glare at Sasuke's figure, seeing the dark chakra around him and the sword. "They see me dead?

"Well then," A second Itachi appears behind Sasuke. "Let's see how strong they are."

Sasuke smirks a little and turns around to face him. He wields Silpharion to block a kunai to his face, and then jumps back. In that instance he forms Blue Crimson and engulfs the field in flames. Being an artificial fire dragon slayer he would be fine, since the flames wouldn't hurt him at all. With this Itachi wouldn't be able to escape or make elaborate dodges.

Sasuke brings out Silpharion and dashes towards Itachi once more, having the surrounding flames gather around his body as he does. He then head butts Itachi in the gut, shouting, "Enryu no Kenkaku!"

Sasuke lifts Itachi up into the air with incredible strength, not enough though to have him hit the ceiling though. He then makes a huge leap and strikes him in the stomach, using Desperado Bomb. Itachi falls on his back and faces upward. The younger Uchiha lands beside his older brother, and glares down at him.

"Itachi, before I finish you off, answer me this." Sasuke asks his brother. Itachi lifts his hand up and points to his left. He looks into that direction and sees a second Itachi sitting on the throne.

"The ending is a long ways away, but I'm listening." The older Uchiha asks his little brother. The clone Sasuke is over splits into crows.

Sasuke glares at Itachi with his Sharingan eyes, saying, "Are you deaf!?"

A blade punctures out of Itachi's chest. It is the form of Blue Crimson. Behind Itachi in the stone seat stands Sasuke holding the Twin Dragon Sword, with the back of the seat freezing from his weapon. The other Sasuke is shown to be an illusion, a genjutsu art to disguise flames as Sasuke. 'I see. He must have made it when he summoned the flames.'

"Like I said; Itachi, before I finish you off, answer me this," says Sasuke as he glares at Itachi. His mind goes back to when Itachi abandoned him, leaving him as the only living Uchiha in the entire estate. Itachi also mentions that if Sasuke ever gains eyes like him, there would be three Uchihas who could do it. That leads him to believe only one thing. "Who is the third Uchiha?"

"…Third Uchiha?" Itachi questions, wondering where he's going with this.

"There is a third Uchiha survivor, and I want you to tell me where he is." Sasuke answers. "Once you do, I'll kill him next."

"Kill him? You wish to kill the only other Uchiha left, leaving you alone?" – Itachi

"Don't give me that bullshit! You said there was a third survivor, meaning it was someone you didn't kill. He must have also helped you destroy our family." Sasuke's explanation brings Itachi to a tiny smirk. "You expect me to believe you killed our entire clan all by yourself?"

'So he's figured it out. I guess Hao hasn't told him, thankfully.' – Itachi

"So who is he!?" Sasuke shouts at him. Itachi takes a moment to pause, not at all upset over being stabbed in the back. After all, Sasuke avoided a fatal blow just so he could get information.

Finally he answers, "Uchiha, Madara."

At those words Sasuke flinches a little in shock. He then thinks about the time he was inside Naruto, or just his mind, and saw the nine tailed fox for the first time. He then repelled him into its cage, right after it told him how his darkness was greater than someone named Madara, or something like that.

Itachi then continues with, "He is one of Konoha's founding fathers, and the first person to discover the Sharingan. No one else has ever unveiled it since him, besides me."

"Don't screw with me! How can he be the founding father, and have helped you kill our clan?!" Sasuke growls at him.

"He is alive. You just naturally assume he was dead because that is the reality you accept. It is just how you believed that I was a good brother to you." Itachi's words really get deep under Sasuke's skin, mostly because of that last part. Sasuke really did think he was a great brother, someone he always looked up too. Even though his father was on his case, and his mother was always supporting him, he had Itachi to look up to, to keep him trying to be his best. Seeing his brother as the one who killed his family literally destroyed him.

"I was so young…my only explanation for that horrible event was that it was a dream, a horrible trick by someone through genjutsu… BUT IT REALLY DID HAPPEN!!!" Sasuke turns around as he screams that last line, swinging Sacrifar to what was behind him. This releases a shockwave of dark energy that blasts the wall, missing Itachi Uchiha. Apparently he was there the whole time, talking to Sasuke through another genjutsu he struck. "My eyes see through all genjutsu."

"This is familiar; you're getting mad at me, screaming and attacking like a child." The real Itachi says to Sasuke.

"Are you finally going to battle me directly?" The Uchiha asks him, ignoring the fading genjutsu behind him.

"I can't help but notice though that you don't have the same eyes as me." Itachi says to the younger Uchiha. He then stands up from his throne, which I assure you is real this time, and walks towards him.

Sasuke grins and reverts Sacrifar to Eisenmeteor. He then pulls off the bandages on his chest, revealing that he is completely healed. The skin around it looks darker than his normal skin tone. "Then go ahead and kill me now, or am I too strong for you?"

"Confident, eh?" He says, stopping on the steps. Up above them, without either of them noticing, is two-face Zetsu. The older brother glares at Sasuke with his Sharingan eyes, who do the same. "The Mangekyou Sharingan, it has a very unique characteristic to it."

"Eh?" – Sasuke

"The minute you start using it your eyes begin a slow descent into darkness. The more you use it, the quicker the darkness approaches." Itachi says.

"Darkness…so becoming blind is the price to pay for controlling the Kyubi no Yoko?" – Sasuke

"So you read the tablet in the secret room, like I told you…" – Itachi

"Who the hell is Madara?" Sasuke questions, walking closer to his brother. He stops after two steps and holds Decalogue with two hands this time.

"He is an invincible immortal, someone who could control the Kyubi like it was a pet. Not only is he also my accomplice and teacher," As he begins to speak, Itachi's eyes swoon into the Mangekyou stage. "He is the only person to learn of the Sharingan's final secret."

"There's more to those eyes than controlling a stupid fox?" – Sasuke

"Of course." Itachi continues, his eyes almost closing a bit at that point. To him he could feel his vision already slipping, even if it was a little. "…This is a story of our clan's history, long before our time; it's a tale of two brothers, Madara and his younger brother."

Before Sasuke knew it, the scenery around him changes. It appears instead of just getting a spoken flashback; Itachi will show it to him. It shows two people, male Uchiha, training against each other in combat. "The two of them were equals in every way, constantly competing to become stronger than the other. They both awakened their Sharingan, and were acknowledged by everyone as gifted, even by fellow clansmen. They continued to refine their skills, until one day they both gained enlightenment."

"Enlightenment?" As Sasuke asks this, the vision moves forward, showing the two brothers training against one another again.

_Flashback Jutsu…_

_"That's an amazing ability you two have there." A voice says within the trees. Madara and his little brother Izuna turn their attention from each other to face him._

_"Who's there!?" Madara asks, taking out a set of shuriken and glares at where this person is._

_Suddenly a flash of light blasts them, causing the Uchiha brothers to shield their eyes. After the light dies down, the brothers are now watching a large being before their eyes, although they are only looking at its left side. It opens its eyes and looks down at the humans. The brothers look down and realize they are floating in midair. Izuna questions, "What is this, genjutsu?"_

_"Your eyes hold much power within. You each possess the strength of becoming great, thanks to your power of darkness." The creature tells them. It lifts its head up and turns its full head around, revealing it to be a dragon. As they look at the creature fully, you could see that the being has a sort of metallic green skin, and is similar to an Asian dragon. Its glowing red, reptilian eyes continue to glare at the two brothers._

_"Power of darkness?" Izuna questions, looking at his older brother with a surprised look on his face._

_"But even with that you can become stronger no?" At the dragon's words they grow more interested in listening further. "Your Sharingan can evolve to new levels. The Mangekyou grows when one feels the darkest despair of losing their closest friend."_

_"Mangekyou?" – Madara_

_"And even with that there is another level of strength; the powers of darkness will bring a drawback, one that can be corrected with another's eyes of darkness." The dragon continues before flying up into the air. Its extremely large body, which extends longer than even the Hokage tower, although that hasn't been made yet, passes by them._

_"Wait, what are you?" Madara questions it, reaching out for it. He's surprised to realize that his hand passes through it, just like it was an illusion. The dragon doesn't answer them, and instead disappears along with the vision._

_The two brothers are finally back in reality, both confused as to what that was about. Izuna asks his older brother, "Was that a genjutsu?"_

_"Who knows…but those words were rather interesting." Madara replies._

_In the darkness of the woods, a person can be seen walking away. He pulls a hood over his head, making a 'humph' sound while smiling. His sharp canines are shown underneath the smile._

_End Flashback…_

Elsewhere…

"Hello there, Konoha people!" Someone shouts, holding his right hand up and waving at the Eight Man Team below him. Up in the trees, showing a carefree attitude is Tobi.

"Who's that?" Hinata asks, looking up at the Akatsuki member.

"He's not in the data of Akatsuki I received from the Mizukage." Haku says, looking up at the 'slacker' villain.

"I'm a new recruit after Sasori-sempai died. The name's Tobi!" Tobi says, waving his hand at the ninjas. As he does Naruto smiles a little, and draws the Twilight Star in its sealed state.

This is only a distraction from another Naruto, who comes up behind him with Rairyu no Hotengeki. "We don't have time for a weakling like you!!"

These words get thrown back at him as his spear, and him, passes through Tobi. Naruto falls to the ground and dispels into nothing. The real Naruto grits his teeth in anger as he glares at him. Tobi states, "Whoa, that was scary! Don't do that, okay?"

"How did he do that? Didn't he hit him?" Sakura questions as she looks up at Tobi.

"Damn it!" Naruto summons forth the Diamond Sword Chromedread, dashing towards Tobi by going to the trees. But before he could go a single foot, a flash of red electricity sparks through his body from the sword, and he falls to the ground in pain. The Twilight Star returns to its normal state, and the boy's eyes become blank orbs of clear whiteness.

"NARUTO!" Hinata screams, dashing to his unconscious body.

"NARUTO!!" An equally worried Sakura does the same thing. She leans down and presses her hands on his skull, trying to see if he has any injuries. "Naruto, pull yourself together! Naruto!"

"GURAAAH!!!" A large beast charges at a towering cage with a seal on it. This lion-looking creature has black-gold fur, yellow on its mane, white claws and fangs, and blood red eyes.

"CAAAAH!!!" A second beast of the same heart charges at the same cage, head butting it and pecking. This creature is a black-silver falcon-like monster with a long silver tail like appendage coming from its behind, yellow horns on its cheek bones, and a light blue tint on the edge of the wing feathers.

"Damn you two!" The Kyubi speaks, opening its eyes to glare at the two monsters. "What are the two of the deceased Juusan Genma doing here?"

"If it isn't the nine tailed demon fox. The strongest of the Juubi's offspring is nothing more than a rat in a box. Pathetic…" The lion says as it glares into the fox's eyes.

"What is it to you?!" The fox scratches at the bars of the gate, trying to attack it.

"We're seeking to take over your host's body after failing to control Manabu Yuuki." The falcon says as it glares at the fox. It then looks to the side and spots Naruto lying down. "Speak of the devil…"

"Uh, what happened…AH!!" Naruto wakes up and sees the two demons outside of his cage. The falcon reaches out for him with its left talon. Naruto spins around to avoid the attack. He then rolls quickly out of the way, glaring up at the beasts. "What the hell are you two?"

"We are the Juusan Genma, two of thirteen demon lords that use to live under the shadow of the Juubi." The lion says as it walks over to him. An image appears before Naruto's eyes, showing a group of thirteen monsters together in a circle. They all look black in appearances, but they each had a different color scheme to them: a red spider, a blue golem, a green lizard, a yellow monkey, an orange hummingbird, a purple killer whale, a pink condor, a brown dog, a white tree, a light blue three horned lamia, and the falcon and lion before him. "We were constantly planning to take over the demon god Juubi and rule all of human world, but we were beaten to the punch when the Six-Path Sage sealed him away, and turned him into the moon."

"With both of them out of the way no one would stop us. But then Daijinryuu came along and killed us all, just because he thought we could entertain him. The only survivors were me Gintaka, and Kinjishi." The falcon continues, following the lion's example. "That's when we ran into a certain human. He used a strange jutsu that transformed our demonic energy into chakra and sealed it away inside of him. With it gone our life energy withered and we died."

"But thankfully we were given a second chance when we were sealed within the sword Twilight Star. The owner wasn't aware of this because he couldn't use it, but our spirits were copied and placed in the sword as well. We tried to control the human Manabu Yuuki, but he was able to overcome our influence, and after he unlocked the tenth sword we were unable to touch him anymore." – Kinjishi

"So you want to control my body to get a new lease on life!" Naruto figures, standing back up to face the two demons.

"You're smarter than you look. Now if you're smarter then you'll let us-

"Rairyu no Hoko!" Naruto opens his mouth to fire a stream of electricity at the two beasts, but nothing comes out. "What the?"

"This is your mind. You can't use your powers here." Gintaka says before it lunges at Naruto. Kinjishi does the same, and they both prepare to take over Naruto's mind.

But they cannot enter his body, for something blocks them, a shield of red chakra. It then repels them off of the boy, who falls down to one knee. The two demons glance at one another, trying to realize what's going on. That's when the Kyubi chuckles quietly.

"I see; the demon chakra is already fusing to the boy. We won't be able to control him if the Biju is affecting his chakra." Kinjishi says to the falcon. It then glows bright gold, showing to be vanishing from his mind. "We'll have to try again on the new one."

"Damn. You're on your own, kid." Gintaka follows the gold lion's example and disappears as well. Their demonic energy vanishes from Naruto's mind, and instantly brings him back to reality.

"Naruto, wake up! Naruto!" Sakura cries in his eyes, trying to wake the boy up. He eventually does, and looks up at the pink haired girl. She smiles a little realizing he's finally okay. "Naruto…"

"Sakura…" As he looks up at her, she punches him in the forehead. "AH! What the hell!?"

"Please Naruto, stop scaring us like this! It's bad for my heart…" She says to him, before hugging the boy.

"Ah, is that the Kyubi Jinchuuriki? He seems weak." Tobi says as he looks down at them from above. Everyone else has their eyes on Tobi, including Hinata, since he keeps sneaking out of their attacks. If it weren't for the Byakugan they wouldn't be able to keep track of him.

"Gotcha now! Tsuga!" Kiba shouts, coming down on Tobi like a spiraling hurricane. Tobi lifts his right foot and easily evades the attack, causing Kiba to crash into the ground. Dizzy, he remarks, "Damn bastard…using that technique so I'd pass through…"

"Actually, he just side-stepped you." Shino answers. Sweat falls down everyone else's faces after watching Kiba's comedic fail.

Suddenly, Zetsu rises up from the tree branch Tobi is on, surprising the group once again. "The battle is over."

"Yeah? And who won?" Tobi asks him.

"Itachi lost." Two Face replies, surprising the Eight Man Squad listening a third time. Who could have beaten Itachi? "Apparently Sasuke lasted longer."

"What?" Naruto picks himself back up onto his feet, and glares at Zetsu.

"Itachi-san lost?! Whoa, didn't see that coming!" Tobi exclaims. Just as suddenly he loses his normal composure and says in a deep, serious voice, "No, it's just like I planned."

"HEY!! Where the hell is Sasuke, you Two-Faced Asshole?!" Naruto shouts at Zetsu.

"What he call us?!" The white side of Zetsu questions in an irritated tone. The black half replies, "Just ignore him."

"Take me to Sasuke now." Tobi orders the other Akatsuki member. He then turns to Kakashi and the others, his right eye swirling with the Sharingan. Of course, since it's the only thing one can see through that hole in his mask, it's not hard to spot up close. But apparently, Kakashi seems to be the only one who notices it, and flinches in shock. "Sorry I can't play with you kids any longer."

"STOP!!" Naruto's shouts do nothing to stop Tobi and Zetsu from leaving, by vanishing into thin air. Naruto picks up his katana and leaps up to the spot, and finds not a single trace of them. He then looks back at Hinata, who looks down in disappointment. "Damn… Who was that guy…"

'It can't be…could it?' – Kakashi

* * *

Kenshin: And that ends this chapter. Allot of things happened that will be important in the future; Naruto using that hidden power, Sasuke's sudden impulse into darkness, Madara's identity revealed, but you already knew that, and the spider woman. You already know of the man in the hood, and Rouki, but both of them will appear soon.

Manabu: Who is that guy anyway? It's the first time I've seen him.

Kenshin: I don't know. He's new apparently. TCM made him up just for this story.

Manabu: Before we go, we have one more thing to add; my profile.

Name: Yuuki D. Manabu  
Weapon: Twilight Star/Senjutsu chakra  
Birthdate/Age: 33 years/June 30th  
Birthplace: Island away from Shinobi Continents called Kongoshima  
Hobbies: Stargazing, Reading About Heroes  
Special Skills: Acrobatics, Swimming  
Likes: His twin sister, the limited friends he still has, Amelia  
Hates: Hao, tiny flying insects, murder in general  
About: Manabu is a hero I've been developing for years. Ever since Kenshin's creation he was made to be his successor. I never imagined him using a sword at first though.

Manabu being unable to use magic, or chakra, is a concept that isn't common in heroes or even rpg characters. I had the idea of making someone who couldn't do everything, or even anything. It's because of this that he tends to be a little angsty and distant, like Roxas or Takeru. There's actually a reason why he can't be like everyone else, but that's for later.

Silent and distant, with a golden heart of justice; Manabu.


	23. The Fate of Three Shooting Stars

_**Naruto and The Water Princess**_

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, or anything else borrowed from other series in this story.

Kenshin: Hello everyone! In this chapter Naruto finally meets with Yusei, and Sasuke's battle with Itachi ends.

Yusei: What happens to me?

Kenshin: I guess you read the script. Well, it's bound to happen.

Manabu: Wait, we've got this thing to deal with; someone complained that our story is lame, so he gave us a few pointers.

Kenshin: Heh, no lamer than that other story featuring the 'Kage Bride' challenge.

Manabu: He also said TCM is objectifying women.

Kenshin: Since when? What's wrong with the females in this story?

Manabu: Well, Nikolai did have a cameo.

Julia: …If Nikolai came in then there might be some logic to his words.

Kenshin: …I see. It's about Samui saying she was a slave, eh? That was a joke, and the only example of a woman being an object in this entire story. And if anyone has a problem with that then-

Manabu: I'll start rewriting the ending… Should we kill off someone else?

Omake-

"Damn those Konoha bastards! I'm going to make them pay for what they did!" Nikolai curses as he comes out of the hospital. As he exits he comes before a group of women. Funny thing is they are all the girls he put in his Daybreak volumes. "Uh oh."

"There he is! He's the guy who made us do those embarrassing and disgusting poses!" One of them says, brandishing a pitchfork. Another woman has a torch. A third woman has a pitchfork set on fire. The rest have ninja weapons.

"Oh yeah? I'll just perform the jutsu again and…" Nikolai performs the jutsu, but gasps when he realizes something terrible; he can't gather chakra. "What the hell?"

"Oh yeah, here you go." A nurse walks up to Nikolai and hands him a piece of paper.

Nikolai reads it, saying, " 'Dear vampire guy, this is your punishment for doing all those horrible things to the women in your village. While you were in the hospital I put a sealing jutsu on your chakra. You won't be able to fight back for two days. Enjoy, Samui.' My god, I hate Konoha."

"GET HIM!" They all scream, running towards Nikolai with their weapons. They then spend the rest of his two day sealing beating the crap out of him multiple times; he comes out of this with a fractured skull, six broken ribs, a punctured lung, a ripped off ear, fourteen blade wounds, and fifteen kicks to the nuts.

_**Chapter 23: The Fate of Three Shooting Stars

* * *

**_

Flashback Jutsu…

"_With the knowledge given to them by the vision, they both gained the Mangekyou Sharingan. The clan has never done such a feat. With the Mangekyou they easily took command of the Uchiha Clan, and Madara became their leader." Itachi says, continuing with his explanation of the Uchiha history. "But that's when he noticed something wrong; as I've said, those who use the power of the Mangekyou will begin a slow descent into eternal darkness. Such an inevitable fate is something no one can prevent…but then the words of the beast in their vision reached Madara, and gave him light in the midst of his despair._

"_He grasped for a new source of light; He stole the eyes of his younger brother… and the darkness never returned." To Sasuke's horror, the vision showed Madara plucking Izuna's eyes out, one by one. It was too gruesome for him to continue seeing, even as he replaced it with his own. Afterwards it shows Madara walking through the rain, with someone following behind him. Once again he is hooded so his appearance is unknown. "But this is only half of the story. It gave birth to a completely new eye technique. Clansmen could only do this exchange, and simply gaining another's eyes isn't enough. This is why many sacrifices have been piled over in our clan's history._

"_With his unstoppable power he easily took over any shinobi clan that dared challenge the Uchiha. He was soon praised as the strongest Shinobi in the world, and an alliance was built between them with the Senju clan of the forest. This alliance gave birth to Konoha." Itachi then shows Sasuke an image of Madara, and the Senju leader, Hashirama. This is the man who would soon become the First Hokage. The two are squalled over in a huge battle, with Madara wielding a transforming scythe and the Kyubi underneath him. "But they began to quarrel over the policies of their new village. This resulted in a battle that created the Valley of the End, and ended with Madara losing. But he survived, just like his eyes and their powers. And so, he formed Akatsuki and prepared for revenge against Konoha, by first sending the Kyubi there to destroy it. Once again a Hokage stopped him. Even today Madara is nothing but a pathetic shell of his former self, one not worthy of being the strongest Uchiha._

"_And now, the time to receive greater power, and surpass Madara, has finally arrived!" Itachi then glares at Sasuke with a crazed look in his eyes, although that's probably the Mangekyou. "That's where you come in, Sasuke!"_

_Sasuke backs away at his sudden outburst. 'So, is this what our clan is like? For decades our family has been killing their best friends, and their brothers, to reach a new level of power? All because they were too stupid to stop flaunting their power? And now, Itachi spared me all those years ago, only to kill me years later?'_

_At this moment Sasuke calms down, closes his eyes, and removes his jacket. Itachi then drops the genjutsu, and says, "I take it you saw my true self clearly, right?"_

"_I see… All this time… I was left to live… Left to kill you… For this moment, where you take my eyes and become an immortal." Sasuke says slowly, opening his eyes to show the Sharingan. Darkness leaks from Decalogue, in response to the darkness in Sasuke's heart. "It's time I fulfill my goal."_

"_Can you really defeat me, with those eyes and that gaudy weapon?" Itachi says as he looks at Sasuke, taking out a single chokuto._

"_This gaudy weapon's power, is from the direct manifestation of my hatred for you!" Sasuke tells his brother. "And my hatred will bring about my desire, to see you dead!"_

_Without warning, Sasuke swings his free hand and releases hidden shuriken. Itachi counters with his own shuriken, deflecting Sasuke's. But luckily Sasuke activated Shadow Shuriken, and Itachi had to replay with the same strategy. The two then dash towards each other, several shuriken still in the air, and clash swords with one another. A second Itachi pops up from behind the first, and throws kunai at Sasuke._

'_He made a Shadow Clone seal during that fight?' – Sasuke_

_The younger Uchiha blocks it by summoning a snake, from out the curse seal on his neck. It wraps around his body and blocks the kunai. Sasuke then pushes Itachi off of him, leaving them to glare at him. The snake slithers out of Sasuke's neck, revealing the Uchiha holding up a windmill shuriken. Sasuke then throws it, causing one of them to block with a kunai. But it melts clean through the knife, and burns through that Itachi. It explodes, releasing crows. _

'_So he concentrated his dark flames into the shuriken, making it strong enough to cut through.' The other Itachi realizes, noticing dark flames coming from his free hand. In the midst of the crows it dashes towards Sasuke, his eyes spinning with the Mangekyo. He makes a powerful kick to his jaw, sending him crashing into the wall. It's strong enough to crack the walls. Sasuke prepares to counter with Mel Force, but Itachi grabs him by the wrist, step on his right foot, and punch him in the gut, to completely immobilize him. _

_Itachi lifts his right hand up, and slowly brings it up to Sasuke's eyes. He then places his index and middle to the top of his left eyeball, and the thumb below it. "Forgive me, Sasuke."_

_The next scene is too gruesome for you to see, even though you saw a guy get his chest blown open, and we will instead invite you to hear Sasuke screaming._

"_GWAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"_

"_Do you think he'll win?" Byakko asks Seiryu as the four members of the Yontoushin leave the cave. Seiryu seems to be worried as well for Sasuke. _

"_I don't know. He's strong though so it should be okay. That's why he has Decalogue." Seiryu says, adding his own assumption and fears out into the open._

_As they walked, two figures can be seen walking up to them from the other end of the tunnel. The Yontoushin stop to witness this person, and gasp when they see who they are. The first person is Sheji, and the other guy is a new one. He is a golden longhaired man with red eyes and tan skin. He has a black robe on his back covering the red of his body. _

"_Ah, Long!" Honatsu says, realizing whom the person was more than the others. Genbu smirks a little as he looks at him._

"_Honatsu, you know this person?" – Seiryu_

"_This is Rio. He is Hao's advisor. He's also the one who assisted me and Genbu in exterminating the Uzumaki clan." Honatsu says as he looks at the golden blond boy. Rio grins as he is introduced, and glares at both Seiryu and Byakko._

"_Hao's advisor? Then he must be hear to kill us." Seiryu says as he glares at him. Him and Byakko get into their fighting pose, but Genbu and Honatsu leave their side. "Honatsu! Genbu! What are you two doing?"_

"_I see it is time to make our move, eh?" The fire dragon asks Rio._

"_Of course. We're going after Naruto Uzumaki directly, to fulfill the goals of Hao-sama." Rio tells them, smirking even more before turning his eyes to Seiryu and Byakko. _

"_Wait, you mean, you two were never on our side?" Shiba asks his two comrades, if they can be called that anymore. _

"_We only faked loyalty to Sasuke to see his progress with the Decalogue. So far, he doesn't have enough hatred in him to unlock the final dark sword." Genbu replies, turning his eyes to Shiba. "But at the very least he's strong enough to damage Naruto. He's ripe for the picking."_

"_I can't believe it; you guys never cared to be with us at all! And to think, I thought you guys were my friends!" – Shiba_

"_So sorry about this Shiba, but that's the ninja business; friends one day, enemies the next." Suddenly, Genbu punches the air in front of them. This releases a powerful shockwave that blows back the two former members of the Yontoushin. He then stomps on the ground, and the cave collapses on them. "Where's Mizuki?"_

"_Rouki took him in after he fought Naruto, and brought him back to Hao's hideout. That man is taking punishment for something he did." Rio answers him, walking off with Magellan and Honatsu following after him. "We'll begin the plan soon."_

"_That's one down." Itachi says, holding the eye in his other hand. Sasuke grabs his empty eye socket and begins to cringe in pain. Blood leaks through his fingers. "Like I said; without the Mangekyo, you have no chance against me."_

_Sasuke turns his other eye towards Itachi, as the black marks begin to seep over his body. He never wanted to rely on this power, but would do so if he had to survive. The moment Itachi steals his other eye is the moment he loses the battle. With the power of the Curse Seal, a wing grows out from the walls behind him, trying to attack Itachi. He backs away before it could reach him, and slips out a jar underneath his sleeve. _

_He then places Sasuke's eye inside it. "This is the gap between our strength._

"_It is also the gap between our eyes." A voice says from behind Sasuke. Suddenly arms wrap around Sasuke, putting him into a full nelson. _

'_A shadow clone?' – Sasuke_

"_Now…" Itachi walks towards Sasuke, prepared to rip his other eye out. Like this there is nothing Sasuke could do to avoid him. _

_But at that moment, the dark marks spread over his entire body. It would seem he's about to reach the full curse mark stage. In this state darkness releases from Sasuke's body, covering Itachi one and two. In a single flash of an instance Decalogue shows a new shape. Not much could be seen in the darkness, but it did have an unrecognizable rectangular shape._

_The darkness blows away a weird light around them, one that changes the entirety of reality. Sasuke now stands by himself with Decalogue in its Eisenmeteor state. He also realizes that his left eye is back in its socket, like it never left._

_Sasuke falls to his knees while grasping his head, feeling an immense pain circulating through his head. At the same time Itachi falls to his knees, touching his eyelids after feeling a sting of electricity go through his body. 'He…my Tsukiyomi…' "How could you overcome the Tsukiyomi with just the Sharingan?"_

"_The Sharingan is just a tool for ninjas, and one is only as good as the person who uses it. It's like I said before; my hatred will make your death a reality, no matter how many times I have to try." He says to him as he holds up his sword. _

"_Fine, then I'll say the same thing to you; I'll make that illusion a reality." Itachi states in a cold voice. He then closes his left eye, and forces a tiger hand seal._

"_There's no point in using Amaterasu. I'm a flame dragon slayer, so your attacks are meaningless; Enryu no Hoko!" Sasuke opens his mouth and prepares to release a large stream of dark flames at Itachi, but nothing came out. He looks down at his hands, and then feels around his teeth with his tongue. To his surprise, they didn't have the sharp canines all dragon slayers had, which meant he was a normal human again. 'Oh no; I've run out on that power supply.'_

"_You were saying, little brother?" Itachi asks him in a taunting voice. _

'_Damn…I should have kept it around.' Sasuke taps the left side of his right ankle to the right side of his left leg, where a sealing tag exists. Smoke puffs out from his seal and flings up into the air into the form of a second windmill shuriken. This must be how he summoned it last time. Using his free hand he grabs hold of one of the blades and throws it at Itachi._

"_If it didn't work the first time, it won't work again." Itachi says as he ducks under the weapon. That's when he summons a Shadow Shuriken underneath the first. This way, even ducking under it is pointless. Of course, even with this Itachi is one step ahead, being able to maneuver himself through them with a leap. "Can't you try anything else?"_

"_I just did." Sasuke says, pulling back his right hand index and middle fingers. This releases the compartments on the shuriken, and the bladed parts to the shuriken come apart and fire at him. One stabs into Itachi's left thigh, severely hurting him. He then grabs his weapon with both hands, and dashes towards Itachi. The Chidori sparks through his weapon. "Gonna run you down; Bakuhatsu no Kenjutsu: Desperado Bomb!"_

_Sasuke strikes Itachi hard with his explosive weapon, creating a huge explosion that covers them fully. Both ninjas are blown out of the remaining smoke like rockets, and Sasuke is shown to have the less burns on him. But he still falls to one knee. 'Damn. Is this what I'm doing to people? I'm amazed Haku stood so long when he took it.'_

"_Sasuke…" Itachi makes hand seals and fires Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu at Sasuke. Sasuke destroys it by using the Dark Sealing Sword Runesave, and sees his brother high up coming down at him. Sasuke uses Mel Force to shoot up into the air, and quickly transforms it into Explosion. _

_Yelling, Sasuke slams his explosive weapon at Itachi's chokuto, causing another explosion that sends him through the roof. The sword Itachi owns has been destroyed completely, and he lands on top of the roof. Sasuke makes it through the same hole, and stares down his weakened brother. 'He really has weakened; thanks to Tsukiyomi failing him, I was able to leave a wound he can't ignore. Now all I have to do is whittle away at his strength until he can't fight anymore.'_

_Itachi slowly picks himself up to his feet, and glares at Sasuke. He then makes several hand seals, and shouts, "Katon: Karyuuendan no Jutsu!"_

_He fires a giant flame dragon towards Sasuke, in a swirling moving way so it wouldn't be hit by Runesave so quickly. But Sasuke has plans of his own. "Dragon Storm!"_

_He swings his sword at Itachi's dragon, releasing a powerful wind combined with fire and ice. This is obviously a combination of the Dark Twin Dragon Sword and the Dark Vacuum Sword. With it, the horrid hurricane easily blows away the flame dragon and continues towards Itachi. In this situation, victory is assured for Sasuke._

"_Amaterasu." Until his brother's right eye started to bleed._

_Suddenly, black flames appear from thin air and strike Sasuke's weather attack. It eventually pierces through and continues towards the little brother. "Crap! I thought I could finish this in time!"_

"_These dark flames are much stronger than the ones you're use to. You won't survive through these burns." Itachi tells him, as his flames travel towards Sasuke. He takes this moment to run away, using Silfarion and his wings to avoid it. _

_This proves to be futile, since it eventually catches up to him. He even ran across the entire forest around them to try and lose it, but it ends up burning the trees they touch too. 'Good thing I have that.'_

_Sasuke takes up Runesave and prepares to cut it down. Even if it is the immortal flames of Amaterasu, it is still fire. Runesave can slice through even these flames, no matter what. He makes a hard swing at it, ready to cut the flames away._

"_Do you really think I'll let that happen?" Itachi tells him as he maneuvers the flames to go above Runesave. They then make contact with his wings, and starts to burn him from those starting points. Once the flames completely consume Sasuke, he falls on top of the rooftop, having reached it while still ablaze._

_Itachi slowly walks over to his brother's body, holding his right hand out. This dispels the flames around Sasuke, so he doesn't get killed. He then stops in front of Sasuke, and reaches the same hand out to him. "It's like I said before; this is my reality."_

"_Is that your thought?" Itachi backs away quickly when he hears those words, thinking his brother was done in. _

_Black flames mysteriously erupt from his body, causing the older brother to back away more. This is a rather weird mystery, because he lost control over dark flames when he couldn't use Hadouryu anymore. But here he is, standing up slowly with this fire wrapping around his body. He doesn't seem to be in pain either. _

"_Thank you, for using that technique. I was hoping you'd use it." Sasuke tells his older brother. The dark flames from the forest begin to move closer to the two siblings, surrounding and trapping them together. "You're probably wondering why I survived the Amaterasu."_

"…_It has crossed my mind…" Itachi mumbles. When he sees Sasuke grinning, he spots the sharp canines he possesses. _

"_That act I said when I was empty on my dragon power was a lie; I figured since Tsukiyomi failed you would resign to Amaterasu. My dragon element gives me resistance to flames of even that variety, so there's no way I could waste it anymore than I already have." Sasuke tells his brother, informing him of his clever plan. He then holds his sword up with both hands and glares at him. The flames begin to cage them in a dome, leaving no escape. "This way, you won't escape. I'll pour all my dark flames into a single explosion. Die you murderous fuck!"_

"_Sasuke…" – Itachi_

"_Bakuhatsu no Kenjutsu: Shikkoku Enryu no Kagu Zuchi! (Explosive Sword Technique: Pitch Black Flame Dragon's Japanese God of Fire)" Sasuke forcefully swings his sword down before Itachi, causing the fire dome's ceiling to pour down like a lightning bolt. The darkness released by the technique is so strong even Sasuke couldn't see with his Sharingan. Although, he couldn't see anything with it, because he ran out of chakra in that last technique._

_The attack causes a huge explosion of dark flames, one so noticeable that no one miles close by wouldn't ignore it. Sasuke gets blown out from the flames, landing on his back. The sword's new form gives a little flash before turning back to normal, which is Eisenmeteor. As he picks himself back up he notices his teeth have shrunk, this time for real. If Itachi uses Amaterasu again he wouldn't be able to avoid it._

_But luckily that isn't the case, because Itachi is facedown on the ground, motionless. This is what Sasuke has been waiting for all this time; the death of his murderous brother. "Yes. YES! I FINALLY DID IT! Did you see that mom! Dad!"_

_Sasuke then falls back on his behind, breathing a sigh of relief and smiling for once in years. Now he can put his whole revenge thing behind him. Now that Itachi is gone he can finally move on with his life. Although, what's left for him besides returning to Konoha, where no one might accept him again except Naruto._

"_To achieve your goals at all costs; is that the way of the Uchiha?" _

_Sasuke's ears perk up when he hears these words, and turns his attention towards his brother Itachi. He then stands up and glares at him. In his anger, the curse mark reforms around his body into the second stage as he glares at Itachi, shouting, "GODDAMN YOU!_

_With this step in power, Sasuke finally sees an illusionary figure around Itachi. "If I hadn't used this technique, I would have been killed."_

"_Eh?" – Sasuke_

"_For reaching this level of strength, I award you a glance at the third and final technique of the Mangekyou; Susanoo." By Itachi's words the illusion beast begins to make a more visible form. It seems to be skeletal._

"_Susanoo?" Sasuke says, looking up at the being before him. _

"_Along with Tsukiyomi and Amaterasu, there was another technique born. This is that technique." Itachi tells Sasuke. His little brother falls down on one knee, a look of fear in his eyes. "If you have anything else to use, don't save them."_

_The beast begins to gain flesh and skin, as well as armor. Just as Itachi is about to move towards him, Sasuke's left eye begins to change. It now resembles a serpent's. 'Let me show you how it's done.'_

_Sasuke grabs hold of his arms and falls down to the ground. Out from his curse mark white flesh rises, and takes the shape of an eight headed snake. Itachi moves his bottom lip a little, from side to side, and says, "This is Orochimaru's Hydra technique; it's about time he showed up."_

_The eight-headed snake thing glares at Susanoo and begins to snarl at it. It's like the legend where a warrior gets a similar eight headed snake drunk and lops each of its heads off. _

_In a similar fashion, Susanoo forms a sword in its right hand and cuts off the approaching first head. This continues until seven of them are down and accounted for, leaving only one left. Instead of attacking it, this disgusting lump covered in saliva slithers up from its throat. Just looking at it can make even a strong man sick. _

_Out from the lump pops up the top half of Orochimaru. To even think of how he would show is more disgusting, especially as he draws Kusanagi from his mouth. "HERE AND NOW! I've been waiting for this chance to arrive! And it's all thanks to you wearing down Sasuke-kun so I can take over his body! With it, I will defeat –_

_Before he could continue, Susanoo plunges his sword into Orochimaru's body. A bleeding Itachi asks, "May I assume this is the last one?"_

"_Don't be a fool Itachi! Just stabbing me won't affect me! I won't just shrivel away after coming back…" Before Orochimaru could continue, he feels his body become numb. _

"_Yes, this is the last trick." – Itachi_

"_The sword Totsuka…Itachi…you had it all along…" Orochimaru says, feeling himself turn into mush. He is then absorbed into the gourd at the end of the sword, vanishing forever. _

_With Orochimaru gone, nothing stands left in Itachi's way. Sasuke is drained of chakra, his curse mark has faded, and he has lost his dragon powers. Just now, even his sword Decalogue has returned to the inside of his left hand. Sasuke slowly backs away from his brother as he walks over to him, Susanoo towering behind him. His back suddenly touches against a wall, and he realizes that Susanoo is now around him. It seems to be fading as well. _

_Itachi reaches out to Sasuke, blood covering his fingertips. It seems he still plans on taking Sasuke's eyes. Of course he would; after going this far it would be stupid not to continue. He reaches closer, and closer, and presses his fingers onto Sasuke._

_He misses and hits his forehead though. Itachi makes a lone smile, and says, "I'm sorry Sasuke. This is the last time."_

_A shocked Sasuke watches as Itachi falls to the ground, Susanoo disappearing on him as well. In the end, the younger Uchiha won. Lightning thunders above them, coming from the black storm clouds that gathered above them during their fight. Sasuke continues to look down at his fallen brother, the dried up blood on his face washing off as the rain pours in a dramatic way. _

_As it washes off, more blood falls down from his face. This time it comes from his eyes. Sasuke soon loses his shocked expression, and a devious smirk appears on his face within the instance of a lightning bolt. _

Half A Day After The Events…

Naruto looks up at the sky, glaring with anger into the stars. He holds his right hand's index finger up and draws in midair, using his lightning powers to make a picture of Sasuke. He then makes a picture of himself, and grits his teeth with rage. He then swings in the air, dispersing the neon lights.

"Sasuke…" His mind wanders onto his former best friend Sasuke, and then to his brother Itachi. He then thinks about what the now deceased Uchiha told him the night before he died.

_Flashback Jutsu…_

_Around 4 in the morning, Naruto decides to leave the group, going through the forest for some personal thinking time. He really wants to do so, with everything that has been happening; Mizuki shows up looking for revenge, and then that man in the black mask showed up. As he looked at that person, he feels a little scared. It almost felt like that guy's mask was his actual face._

_As Naruto wanders aimlessly through the forest, he comes before a certain spot where he notices a figure clouded in darkness close by._

_A figure with Sharingan eyes…_

_'Sasuke? No, maybe it's him…' Naruto says, looking ahead at the person while hiding in the trees. As that person comes out from the darkness, he could tell that it is really Itachi. While he begins to tense up, a bird with a bandaged left flies over top of him on a tree branch._

_"Come out, Naruto Uzumaki." He says, looking directly in Naruto's direction. Knowing he's been found, the blond ninja comes out from hiding to face him._

_"Are you here to capture me?" Naruto asks. Without waiting for an answer he throws three kunai knives at him, but they are all blocked and deflected by Itachi's._

_"Not at all; I'm only here to talk to you." He replies, keeping a calm exterior. He stays like this even when the kunai transform into Naruto duplicates and dash towards him. Without his eyes leaving Naruto Itachi throws shuriken at the clones and destroys them._

_"You think I'm going to believe that so easily from you!" Naruto shouts at him. He knows about the Uchiha massacre that he caused, and that he's an Akatsuki member, so there is no way he could just listen to him. "Besides, I can easily overpower you in numbers!_

_"Not only that, but if I capture you, then Sasuke will stop his obsessive quest for revenge!" – Naruto_

_Itachi looks at him with a paused look on his face, knowing he saw this coming a mile away. Of course it's only natural; their original meeting involved the bloodthirsty shark Kisame. "Why do you care about my little brother? He's a missing ninja now."_

_Now it was Naruto's time to pause. He makes his reply by saying, "Because, I've been more of a brother to him than you have!"_

_At that, Itachi couldn't help but make a small smile, knowing his words have a little point. Naruto dashes towards Itachi, acting rash at the moment. Both of his hands collect electricity. Without warning, black crows come out from Itachi's cloak towards him. Naruto backs up and looks at them, but then notices one has the Sharingan in its eye. This traps him in Itachi's genjutsu._

"_I'll say it once more; I've only come to talk." Itachi says to Naruto. As he looks at the older ninja he could only make out what appears to be a rather pale person covered in black crows, or maybe ravens. "You want to bring back Sasuke right? But what if he refuses?"_

"_If he fights back then I'll beat him down the best I can!" Naruto says to him with a glare. _

"_So, by force if necessary… If Sasuke goes along with it no problem then that's one thing, but if he doesn't then that's another." Itachi states, almost quoting as he looks at him. _

"_Eh?" – Naruto_

"_You see Sasuke as a brother, right? What would you do if he tries to attack Konoha?" – Itachi_

"_What? He has no reason to attack – what are you getting at?" Questions the blond ninja. _

"_Sasuke is already being poisoned by his darkness. If it keeps up he will want to destroy everything even you care about. There is still a chance to color him pure, but he could easily turn the other way." Itachi says to him as the ravens begin to gather around him. "If he attacks Konoha, would you be able to stop him? Even if you had to kill him?"_

"…_Don't talk like that! I'll stop Sasuke, free him from his darkness, and protect Konoha!" Naruto shouts at him. _

"_Naruto Uzumaki, you hold the power of the Kyubi, the cursed bloodline of Hadouryu, and the sword of ten forms that rivals Sasuke's…and yet you're still a child." He begins, glaring at Naruto as serious as he could. _

"_What? Where did that come from?" – Naruto_

"_You talk of nothing but a pipe dream. There are times when ninjas have to make painful choices, and compromise the things they want the most for what matters the most." On Itachi's words Naruto is suddenly reminded of what Jiraiya told him. To be suddenly reminded of the same thing is rather annoying. _

_With a firm, stern look in his eyes Naruto says, "Someone said that to me before…but there's no choice; if I give up on Sasuke because you say so, I'll regret it the rest of my life! That's not how I want to live!"_

_For an instance, Naruto could have sworn he saw Itachi smiling at him. And it wasn't a creepy smile, a demonic smile, or even a fake smile; it is a genuine smile, like the kind he receives from a good friend of his who clearly cares about him. _

_The smile takes him completely off guard, leaving enough time for a black bird to sneak into his mouth. Naruto almost chokes to death as it sneaks into his mouth and slithers down his throat. "I've given you some of my power. I hope the day never comes when you'll have to use it."_

"_What…what are you talking about? What's going on? Isn't it your group's goal to kidnap me!" Naruto shouts at him in a questioning voice. He falls to the ground after swallowing the bird, still choking and almost throwing up. _

_"I'll be going; there is something more important I have to do." Itachi says, holding his right hand up. "If you run into Sasuke, tell him I am staying at an abandoned Uchiha stronghold northwest of here."_

_He then explodes in a puff of smoke, leaving them to realize he was just a Shadow Clone._

_End Flashback…_

"Hey Naruto, we need to talk." Tsunade says to Naruto as he looks up in the sky. The blond ninja turns his head and looks down from his floating saucer, noticing the old lady is standing on the ceiling of the Hokage Tower below him.

"Oh fine. What is it?" Naruto asks her, leaping off his disk to land before her.

"I didn't tell you this earlier because I didn't want anyone else to know, but you have a special visitor." Tsunade begins, looking away with a little shame in her eyes. She knows that Naruto has a lot on his mind, but this is rather important. "It's your uncle."

"Eh?" Naruto says before pausing. He then clears his ears and looks at her again. "I'm sorry, what did you say? It sounded like you said I had an uncle."

"I did. He's waiting for you inside of one of our cells." She tells him. Naruto's eyes widen as he looks at Tsunade.

"Wait… Are you saying that I have relatives? Living relatives? And you locked them away?" Naruto asks her.

"He wanted to be locked up. He said…" Naruto runs off before she could finish, jumping off the edge of the tower as his device flies down to him. It comes up under him and allows him to fly towards the prison area. Tsunade sighs as he leaves, saying, "This isn't going to go well."

Naruto quickly reaches the prison area and demounts his saucer. He then shows his license and heads further inside after asking about his uncle. Since he didn't give a detailed explanation he just asked about someone named Uzumaki, and got directions finally. He then rushes through the halls looking for that guy's prison cell. He comes before a large gate at the end of a hall, separated from everyone else's. Inside Naruto sees burn marks along the ground and ice attached to the bars. The bars look like they've been bent enough for someone to break out.

Surrounded by all this mess is Yusei, having fallen asleep sometime ago. He opens his eyes upon sniffing something in the air. Naruto uses his electric powers to open the cell, and approaches the now waking dragon slayer. Yusei glares at Naruto and sniffs a little, before asking, "May I assume you're this Naruto I've heard of?"

"Are you really my uncle? No fooling?" Naruto asks him. He hasn't had a living family member since birth. This is something too good to be true to him, and yet it might also be a cruel prank, one no one should ever pull.

"If you're Kushina's child then you have nothing to worry about." – Yusei

"I see…" Naruto says quietly, before slowly walking over to him. He then charges electricity to his right fist, and punches him in the face. This sends him flying into the wall. Yusei easily stands back up after receiving such a hit, despite leaving a print on the brick wall. "HOW COULD YOU LEAVE ME ALONE FOR SO LONG? WHERE WERE YOU ALL THIS TIME?"

Yusei looks into Naruto's eyes, and could tell that a little bit of tears is beginning to fester. "Well in all fairness I didn't even know you were alive. I only knew Kushina was still alive, and that was enough for me to die alone, happy. It was only 3 and a half years ago, or a little more, that Manabu told me you were all that was left of her."

"Eh? Manabu told you?" – Naruto

"Yeah, he came to find me to tell me about my nephew and how Kushina died. I was so sad when that happens…" Yusei says as he looks at him. He then turns around and glares off into the distance, having a dazed look in his eyes. His eyes turn green and he then looks at Naruto. "I was a member of your family before being exiled."

"What? Why were you exiled?" – Naruto

"Because of Hadouryu Kinjitsu: Joutenryu no Hoko. It's a forbidden technique that turns one into a full dragon. Anyone who uses it has to leave the clan forever." Yusei tells him. "I, Yusei, had to use it for a reason."

"Why? Why is it forbidden? You're not making much sense!" Naruto says to him. He then notices Yusei places his hands on the boy's shoulders.

"It forces one to eat human flesh!" He leans forward and tries to bite down on him. A shocked Naruto couldn't lean back in time, and gets a chunk bitten out of his shoulder.

"AH!" Naruto falls down and grabs his left shoulder, feeling plenty of blood dripping down. Yusei swallows what he ate of Naruto, grinning and snickering.

"Delicious…aooh! BLEH!" Yusei quickly grabs his mouth and then falls to the ground. There, Yusei hurls up the piece of Naruto he just bit off, along with blood and mucus. He then falls to the ground flat. "I really can't do it…"

"Did you just try to eat me!" Naruto shouts as he looks at him. He rips off a piece of his shirt and wraps the cloth around his wound.

"I'm sorry Naruto…I gave in to my desire. Those who use the kinjitsu lose their humanity and are forced to eat other humans; because dragons can only live on the elements and human flesh." Yusei tells him as he looks in his eyes. He then leans down and begins to fall. "That's the only reason…"

"So you only did that to protect others… By not being around anyone you wouldn't hurt anyone… but why do it in the first place? Why use the technique?" Naruto asks him before helping him stand back up.

"…I had no choice. There was someone I was fighting against that I couldn't defeat. So I had to use it, and I won, but they escaped and I couldn't stop them." He replies. A little bit of drool comes down his lips as he slowly loses consciousness. "He was most likely responsible for the Uzumaki Massacre."

"Who, Honatsu?" – Naruto

"No… I forgot his name…but he was a real monster… I heard he was siding with Akatsuki…so I went to them later and then a…a fight…ensued." Yusei's words seem to be slipping away from him. Apparently he must be sleepy or something.

"Wake up!" Naruto shocks his uncle back awake. "Who did you fight?"

"Akatsuki ninja! Tobi…" He says, before drifting off into slumber. This time, Naruto couldn't even shock him awake, or keep him awake for long.

'So he was only gone for so long because he didn't want to eat people… But then why didn't Manabu tell me about him? And who really killed our family?' – Naruto

Afterwards Naruto left the prison and went home. He couldn't bring Yusei back with him home because of his crazed nature. He would be a good nephew in showing his fiancés to him, but that would make him a bad lover. He then told Samui, Sakura and Hinata about Yusei, and turned in for the night. Too much stuff had happened for him to stay awake.

Too bad it was only going to get worse.

Naruto opens his eyes and looks around, seeing nothing but darkness surrounding him. He notices flashes of light going off above, and looks up. There he sees two beings fighting each other, upside down. One of them is a large green, metallic skin dragon, and the other is a shadow creature with ten tails and one eye. He easily picks them out to be previous beings he's dreamt about.

The dragon opens its mouth and fires a destructive stream of fire, one that causes a massive explosion around its opponent. The Juubi roars, and slashes at the dragon, releasing energy claws that extend from its own. This makes a direct hit to its tail, causing the dragon to roar in reaction. It then tackles the Juubi, who grabs it by the horns and tries to hoist it down. The dragon opens its mouth and fires an explosive blast of electricity, while the Juubi releases a stream of darkness. Both attacks cause a huge explosion, one that blinds Naruto's vision.

The scene then changes to show two humanoids walking away from each other from a tattered and torn battlefield on an island. The one on the left is hidden from Naruto's view, but the other has two eyes just like the Juubi and is shrouded in darkness. As they exit, the island begins to sink, and hundreds of humans still on it die.

Naruto wakes up one morning to the sound of someone knocking on his door. The drowsy ninja picks himself up and walks over to it, dressed in his Froggy pjs. He opens the door and looks out, seeing Kakashi waiting for him behind it. "Eh, Kakashi-sensei?"

"Naruto, I need you to come with me to the Hokage's office." He says to the blond. Beside him Naruto could see Sakura waiting there, with a sad look in her eyes. Samui and Hinata are at the moment coming out of their rooms, having heard the knocking.

"Huh? What for?" Asks the boy. He really didn't see the need to leave now, since it was a little too early for missions. But even as he looks into the Jonin's eye, he could tell this was serious.

"Just come with me." He says, turning away and walking down the hall. Naruto goes back into his room, and comes out wearing his orange and black jumpsuit.

With a fully dressed Sakura and Samui, Naruto and Kakashi quietly walk to the Hokage Tower. There they see two toad summons beside it; Gamabunta and Gamakichi on top of his head.

"Eh? Gamabunta and Gamakichi?" – Naruto

"Hey, Naruto…!" – Gamakichi

"What brings you here so early in the morning? Is something up?" Naruto asks them. He could only surmise this has something to do with why Kakashi called him out so early in the morning.

"Actually…"

"Gamakichi, keep quiet! Let Boss and Tsunade take care of it!" The boss toad tells his son.

Now Naruto knows this must be serious. He then walks into the tower with the others and climbs up, hoping to get to the bottom of this no matter what. He surely isn't going to sit around and twittle his thumbs while the word falls apart around him.

As Naruto enters the office, he spots Tsunade sitting at her desk, as usual, and Shizune holding Tonton the pig in her arms beside her, as usual. What wasn't usual is Sai beside her, and four toad summons no bigger than he was as a kid sitting on the other side. Naruto stares at them with a questioning look on his face; he has summoned lots of summoning animals from both the Toad and the Yamata contracts, and neither of them gave him those old frogs. But to those who have seen them one can be easily recognized as Fukasaku, and the other his wife.

"So, this is Jiraiya-chan and Mana-kun's apprentice, right?" Fukasaku asks Tsunade, looking at the blond kid.

"Yes, this is Naruto Uzumaki. He's probably this child of prophecy you were speaking of." – Tsunade

"Who's this guy?" – Naruto

"Naruto, show some respect. That's Fukasaku, one of the great sages of Myoboku-zan! He's come all this way to speak with you!" Shizune says to him. She wanted to say it first before Tsunade, knowing her teacher would lose her temper on him.

"Actually, I'm one of the two great frog sages. But am I correct in assuming you're Jiraiya-chan's apprentice?" Fukasaku says, once again asking about Naruto's position.

"EH? Where do you get off calling Ero-Sennin 'Chan'? That's insulting!" Naruto tells him, pointing at the old man/frog.

"Didn't you hear Shizune? Watch your mouth! Fukasaku here taught Jiraiya his sage techniques! He's his master!" Tsunade finally yells out, letting her temper get the better of her again.

Naruto stares at Fukasaku in shock. "You taught him!"

Fukasaku starts laughing, saying, "Ero-Sennin! That's a perfect name for him!"

"So, why come here? Where is he anyway?" Naruto asks the old frog.

"Well, let's see…where to begin…Jiraiya-chan has fallen in battle." At Fukasaku's words Naruto's eyes widen in shock. The others in the room, who have already heard of the news, lower their heads in depression. If it was hard for them to take, it will be harder for him to.

"Damn…" Manabu curses as he looks at his feet. He then turns his attention to a growing spike and punches it. With his sage chakra active he could bust it to pieces. Manabu is now shown to be in a fit of rage, after receiving the news of what happened. "Jiraiya…"

Sasuke plops in a chair with a calm, upset look on his face. Or maybe he always looks like this. He is right now in a hidden location within a forest, underneath a spiked dome. Sitting before him at a round table are Tobi/Madara, Kisame, Byakko and Seiryu. Byakko seems to have a lot of stitches and bandages around her body, while Seiryu looks like a picture of health.

After his life and death match against Itachi Sasuke passed out. Zetsu and Madara arrived on the scene and took the living and dead Uchihas to a secret hideout for Akatsuki, here. There, after Sasuke woke up, Madara began to tell him about the secrets of Itachi, before receiving Amaterasu placed upon Sasuke by Itachi. Through his words Sasuke realized that Itachi was forced to kill his clan. Apparently the Uchiha were planning a coup d'etat on Konoha. Itachi wanted to stop the war because he disliked fighting. Ever since the Nine Tailed Fox attacked Konoha and the Yondaime gave his life, some rumors started spreading about the Uchiha clan planning this, and it led to them becoming this way.

The Sandaime tried to negotiate and find a peaceful way around this, but failed. Eventually the elders forced Itachi to kill his family, seeing as he's the only one who knows about it and is against it. But in the end, even though he killed his mother and father, he couldn't kill his little brother. (This made him a terrible son, but a noble brother.) After he left Itachi went to the Hokage and told him along with the elders that if any harm comes to Sasuke he would tell everyone about Konoha's secrets.

There is also an explanation on why he went back to Konoha when the Sandaime died, to warn the elders that he was still alive; he had no intention of capturing Naruto at all, playing the role of the evil brother who wanted to steal the eyes of his little brother to become immortal. Madara also told Sasuke about the history of the Uchiha clan, and how they were all destined to be at war with the Senju who ruled Konoha. After taking some time to let this info sink in, and remembering something from when he last saw Itachi, he believed Madara and now wants to end the fighting his own way.

"You say you want to destroy Konoha, but can you do it?" – Madara

"My goal is the death of the elders. No one else has to suffer." Sasuke says, cupping his hands together like a triangle.

"Even if you target the higher ups the lowers will just shield them. You need to think this clearly." Kisame tells the kid.

"What does a fish face like you know?" Byakko tells him, pissing the blue guy off.

"Sasuke, you need to think this over. How can you not care about your brother's wishes?" Seiryu asks the younger Uchiha.

"I can't just look the other way on what the elders did! They have to pay for putting Itachi in that position!" – Sasuke

"Your group isn't strong enough to destroy Konoha, since you lost those other two. Akatsuki is still wounded too." Madara states, turning his face towards his descendent. "If all you want is to destroy Konoha, then we can assist with that. All we ask is that you take care of something for us."

"What's that?" – Sasuke

"There are 9 tailed beasts, or Biju, in existence. Akatsuki has claimed all but 3." Madara says to Sasuke.

"So, you haven't captured Naruto yet…" Seiryu gloats with a cold smirk on his face.

"Akatsuki will deal with the Kyubi and the Shichibi. Can I trust you and those two to find the Hachibi?" – Madara

Later after the meeting, Madara can be seen walking over a bridge. Before him appears Zetsu. He asks, "How'd it go?"

"Swell. Without mister 'I can't touch Konoha' Itachi, I have no more pests in my way, except for Hao. Now all that's left is to capture those three." Madara says to Two Face.

"You've waited such a long time." Zetsu says.

"Yes, but everything's going according to plan. We may have lost a lot of members, but things folded out nicely like origami. Besides, the most important thing is that I've won Sasuke over, even though Decalogue did most of the work." – Madara

"I do not understand… Why did you let Sasuke keep that weapon? It was obviously made by that person." – Zetsu

"Yes, he's pulling the same thing on Sasuke. But that's not a problem; I wouldn't have gone to Sasuke if the Decalogue hadn't festered his dark heart." – Madara

"What do you mean, fallen in battle? You mean, he's dead?" Naruto asks Fukasaku. His eyes widen in terror as the information sinks into his mind.

Fukasaku begins by saying, "In the beginnin', Jiraiya-chan's goal was only to gather intelligence. He never intended to fight Pain, but his abilities were too much; far beyond his imagination. And without knowin' the extent of his powers, no one could ever win against them no matter how many times they fought. Jiraiya-chan pushed himself beyond his own limits, and almost managed to uncover their secrets. No one but him could have made it that far. On top of that, he could have gotten away if he wanted to, but he stayed behind and sacrificed himself, to leave a coded message to you all. He bequeathed the future to you all."

"Coded message?" Tsunade questions.

Fukasaku opens his robes and turns around. "His throat crushed in battle, Jiraiya-chan left a message about Pain. Here it is."

He shows everyone the markings Jiraiya made on his back; 9, 31, 8, 106, 7, 207, 15. The Hokage Tsunade looks at the markings, but doesn't recognize them as anything she has seen before. "No doubt Jiraiya did it so Pain wouldn't realize his plan. This is all that's left of him."

"…" Naruto remains quiet as he looks at him. If what Fukasaku is telling him is true, then Jiraiya is really dead. He lifts his head up and looks at Tsunade, asking her, "Did you send him?"

"Yes, I did." Tsunade tells Naruto, who grows even more angered at her words.

"You should know that guy more than anyone! How could you send him on such a dangerous place alone?" - Naruto

"Naruto, that's enough." Kakashi interrupts Naruto, but it does nothing to calm his anger at the situation. He gains a rather similar feeling in his stomach that he remembers from when he fought Sasuke last time. "You must also consider how Tsunade feels…"

Naruto takes a minute to turn to Tsunade, and his anger lessens a little when he sees the troubled look on her face. He didn't think about how she would feel about sending him there in the first place. But it doesn't change the fact at what happened.

"If Ero-sennin was Hokage, he wouldn't have let Tsunade go on a suicide mission!" Naruto remarks before running out the door. As he runs, tears come down from his eyes and drop down onto the floor.

"Naruto." Sai whispers to himself, watching his friend run off like that.

"Let him be…" Tsunade says, watching as he runs off.

After running from her office Naruto begins to wander aimlessly, and continues to cry even more. Even as he walks towards Ichiraku Ramen he still can't stop thinking of what happened to Jiraiya. He orders the Miso Ramen, but spends the next two hours moping and staring at his bowl.

Even Ayame finds this weird. "Naruto, are you okay? I see food in your bowl instead of blurry motions."

"It's nothing that concerns you Ayame. I'm just upset." Naruto replies, pushing his bowl aside. After that last sigh, he realizes his sadness has caused all of his tears to run out. Now instead of just being sad and depressed he is filled with anger.

He looks behind him, noticing a weird smell in the air he recognizes. He turns around and sees Samui, Sakura and Hinata behind him. In a depressed voice, he asks, "What brings you guys here?"

"We heard what happened, Naruto." Sakura says, looking away with a similar look as he reads the building.

"Naruto, just remember, we're all here for you when you need it." Hinata adds, hoping she could cheer him up. She just hates seeing him like this, but he still has that look on his face.

"You know, whenever I confronted Sasuke about him and his plot for revenge, I thought he was taking things a little too far. But now, I know exactly how he feels. I know how he feels in hating Itachi." Naruto says, standing back up to walk away. "I'm going to avenge his death."

"Naruto, I know it looks bad, but you have to understand; Taking revenge on the guy who killed your teacher will only give you self satisfaction-

"THEN HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO FEEL?" He yells at Hinata, interrupting her words. He then begins to leave, but the pink haired ninja grabs hold of him.

"Naruto, you have to calm down!" Sakura tells her fiancé. She could tell the death of Jiraiya is messing with him, but his reaction to this is similar to how Sasuke wanted to kill Itachi. "Revenge won't bring him back!"

"Shut up!" Naruto shouts, ripping his arm out of her grip. This causes her to fall backwards on the ground, looking up at Naruto in fear. He has a hateful glare in his eyes.

"Sakura-san!" – Hinata

"Hinata, your uncle died to protect your clan. Sakura, you have never experienced the death of a family member. Ero-sennin was murdered in cold blood! WHAT THE HELL DO YOU KNOW ABOUT ME?" He yells at them, releasing a little bit of the Kyubi's chakra as he does.

Samui reaches out and slugs Naruto in the face, sending him to the ground. The sudden punch cancels out the demon chakra as well. Hinata holds her breath when she sees him get punched. "Naruto! Samui-san, what are you doing?"

"Where is this cowardly behavior coming from? You are a ninja. Things like this happen on a daily basis! GROW UP AND ACCEPT IT!" Yells the woman. She glares down at Naruto as he listens to her, tears slowly swelling up in his eyes.

"But I-

Samui slaps him across his right cheek this time, silencing him. "NO BUTS! WHAT KIND OF FUTURE HOKAGE ARE YOU!"

"Samui-san, that's enough!" Hinata yells at her.

"Don't defend him! I didn't dedicate my life to an indecisive brat! The man I fell in love with was someone who holds a heart that approaches all his problems with confidence and a smile! Where did that person go?" – Samui

Without answering, Naruto stands up and turns away from her. He then summons his saucer and uses it to fly away, keeping his silence as he exits the scene.

"Naruto, wait!" Sakura calls out, chasing after him before he flew off.

"Naruto, may have a point. I never felt any anger or animosity when Neji-niisan lost his father." Hinata says, looking down at the ground in shame. She wishes she could help bring her fiancé out from his funk. "But the way he's taking this is no different than Neji-niisan."

"You're right." – Sakura

Naruto lands on top of the Fourth Hokage's head. After sitting down he places the headband over his eyes, and lies on his back. Tears leak down from his eyes as he thinks. He stays up there for a few hours, up until the night overcomes the day and the stars above can be seen.

"How's it going, little dragon?" Yusei asks the boy as he walks to him, from up the side of the mountain. Naruto sits back up and removes his headband, glaring at the silver haired dragon slayer. Even as he does he doesn't say a word, which is rather different from his normal tone. He's really upset over what happened.

"I wanted to talk to you." Yusei says to him as he sits down. His eyes show a strange green glow, like before. Even after speaking some more to him he remains silent. Yusei sighs with a disgruntled look on his face, and says, "You're taking this like an immature kid. There are plenty of ninjas in this village that have lost someone they care about."

"Well how else am I supposed to take this! He's gone, and he'll never come back!" He complains. Naruto grips his fists tightly, grits his teeth, and begins to possess green eyes. "I don't want his death to be in vain. It isn't fair that he died like this!"

"Are you sure your name is Naruto Uzumaki?" At his words Naruto flinches, and loses his new eyes. He then looks at Yusei, with a questionable look in his eyes. "If you're going to push away everyone around you then you might as well follow in that Uchiha's steps."

"I am nothing like Sasuke!" – Naruto

"Well from what I hear you yelled at your friends, you can't think of anything but the person who died, and you gave up eating for a while." – Yusei

"Have you been watching me?" – Naruto

"Your Hokage told me about your exploits while I was in jail. And I have to say you don't act anything like how I was told. From what I heard you're just like Kushina, always trying to be the center of attention." - Yusei

"My mother?" At the mention of his mother Naruto's ears perk up with interest.

Yusei smirks a little and says, "The thing is, she didn't care whether she got good attention like me for completing an assassination mission without casualties, or bad attention like her playing a prank on her big brother."

Naruto chuckles a little when he hears that. His mother is just like him after all. But this doesn't bring him out of his funk. "After I became a dragon I couldn't go back to the village. So I sent Kushina back and went into hiding; I was so upset when I heard the village was destroyed. Then I heard she was safe in Konoha with the Yondaime, by an old sage named Jiraiya."

"Eh?" Naruto says, making a double take. "You met the Ero-sennin?"

"Yeah. He told me about how Kushina met Minato and joined Konoha because of him. Not long after that she met Manabu." – Yusei

"So they really did know each other?" Naruto says to himself. He can feel his anger slowly slipping away. "But then, what about you? Where were you all this time?"

At that Yusei begins to laugh. "Well, after I used the Heaven Dragon's Roar I knew no one who accept me back, so I hid in Tsukigakure from other people. As long as I was in the forest no one would disturb me, no one would find me, and no one would get eaten. The next month I discovered my family was wiped out, and I became obsessed with finding those responsible. During that rampage I met a guy named Manabu D. Yuuki, and I took my rage out on him. He somehow overcame me. Because he defeated me in my hyper form, who never lost a single match before I used it, I was impressed so I befriended him and we traveled together looking for who killed my family."

"You lost to Manabu? But I could barely keep up with your movements." Naruto complains as he stares at him. Yusei digs into his pocket and takes out an ice-cream bar. He hands it to Naruto, who takes it. "What's this?"

"Anyway, the next year I met Jiraiya, and he told me of what was happening. I was so happy to hear my little sister survived, so I went back into hiding. I wanted Manabu to go find Kushina and protect her for me; I guess he failed. That's why he came to find me." Yusei says, thinking about the time he met Manabu during their team up.

"Manabu left Konoha to find me? I thought he was after that Hao guy!" – Naruto

"He left to find me. I was always on the move and in hiding, so I guess he took longer than expected to find me. When we met up Manabu told me of how Kushina and Minato died, and who you were." Yusei continues. Naruto, who tunes it out, could hear a little bit of his stomach growling.

"But then…why didn't Manabu tell me about you? Why am I hearing about you now?" – Naruto

"I think I have an idea… I told Manabu not to let Kushina leave Konoha. I had a feeling the person who killed off our clan might want to get rid of her too. Mana-chan might have had the same idea." Yusei states to Naruto about his theory. He then bows his head down. "Naruto, if I have any advice for you, never use Heaven Dragon's Roar. By using that you'll gain the existence of a real dragon, including the ups and downs. I'm sure you don't want to kill and eat people right…"

"I could never do that…" Naruto says, opening the ice cream bar. To his surprise, it's actually several ice cream flavors wrapped in balls on a stick. "So what's this?"

"It's my special creation; Ice Kabab. It's several ice cream flavors rolled into dango and attached to a single stick. The flavors are strawberry, cookies and cream, vanilla bean, sea salt, and mint chip." He says, smiling as Naruto begins to eat it. He then closes his eyes.

"It's tasty. This blue one is sea salt right?" Says Naruto as he eats the light blue flavor ball. He then stops to look at Yusei, who remains motionless. "Yusei-ojichan?"

"It was my dream to be a chef. I had no intention of becoming this thing I am now…if things had gone differently, I might have quit the assassination business. But, I guess once a killer, always a killer." Yusei tells Naruto, giving off a faint smile as he looks at his blond nephew. "I guess I can't be anything but an easygoing dreamer and a killer."

"Yusei-ojichan…I think you would have become a great chef." Naruto says to him. Yusei makes one last smile at Naruto, and returns his face to look ahead. His eyelids close down on his eyes, and his stomach growling finally ends. "Is something wrong?"

"… Naruto… I'll be leaving soon. I'm getting hungry." Yusei tells Naruto. He then falls backward, remaining unconscious.

Naruto goes over his body and tries to wake him up. "Ojichan? Ojichan!"

It fails. Apparently, he's not just sleeping. This is the final nap for Yusei. Naruto remains quiet as he looks down at him, and finishes his ice cream treat. He then gets down on his knees and claps his hands together. "Ryusei-ojichan…"

After praying, he lifts the dead body up to be placed over his shoulder, but it disintegrates into dust. The remaining dust that was Yusei's body blows into the wind, scattering as it dances above the skies of Konoha. More tears fall down Naruto's eyes as he watches him leave.

* * *

Kenshin: Wasn't that a little harsh?

Julia: No one has died in this story since Mizuki, maybe, and Zabuza. Besides, that's the fate of a shooting star; no matter how much they shine, they always fall.

Kenshin: I meant Nikolai getting his butt kicked! I mean I doubt even Whitebeard went through punishment that harsh.

Julia: Perverts of his level can take any type of pain. And before we leave, Yusei has an announcement.

Yusei: I won't be showing up anymore here, so I'll leave my profile here.

Name: Ryuusei Kumono Uzumaki

Weapon: Fire and Ice Dragon Slayer bloodline, Omega Sight Technique

Birthdate/Age: 40s/September 10th

Birthplace: Land of Whirlpool

Hobbies: Cooking, Sleeping

Special Skills: Eating 13 full courses without getting food poisoning

Likes: Kushina, food, sleeping

Hates: Eating anything that can talk, and dragons

About: Yusei is someone who used to be a self-proclaimed purveyor of justice, until he met a golden, samurai star. It's also actually because of him becoming who he is now that he hates dragons, and anything named dragon. That's why he doesn't name his attacks with Karyu or uses his full name.

Yusei's role in the story was short lived, seeing as he's just an OC, and a shooting star no less. That's sort of why I chose that name for him. On a side note Joutenryu no Houkou is a technique that only three people have used; one became a monster and started eating people before being killed, a second is incognito, and the third is Yusei, who is dead.

In death there is justice, and only with death one can receive justice; The Knight of Death Omega, Yusei.


	24. Ninja Gaiden

_**Naruto And The Water Princess**_

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Fairy Tail, One Piece, Static or Rave. I admire Hiro, Oda, Masashi, and DC for making them though.

Yusei: Hi-ho everyone! But seriously, let's go to the facts. Before we can continue with the story, there is something you all need to know: my story, as well as the story of all the humans who call themselves Dragon Slayers.

Manabu: A flashback is necessary for one to understand certain things, so we'll be going back around 19 – 20 years ago.

Yusei: So enjoy this flashback chapter, featuring yours truly, Yusei Kumono Uzumaki, and Kushina Kumono Uzumaki.

_**Chapter 24: Ninja Gaiden

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**_

'You let one human stand up to you and they all stand up to you! Those puny insects have one thing we don't, numbers. And if they realize that, there goes our way of life. It's not about food. It's about keeping those humans in line; that's why we reign over these weaklings!'

Dragons; these are beings of terrible power and wicked strength. Engines of destruction, they rule over human lives with fear, and treat them as nothing more than food to be feasted upon, not that even. Dragons only care for being the strongest race of beings. Even among the demon races they exist at a level surpassing them all. Their leader was the dragon king. This king wanted nothing more than for all living creatures to eternally entertain him.

These creatures have stayed plastered in the hearts of humans as a sign of fear, until one dragon got tired of it all. This dragon got sick of having to deal with the others and decided to live peacefully with the humans, protecting them from his malevolent brothers. That dragon also took human form and had children with one. There was a lot of animosity between these two races because of this; the dragon did regret the choice, but decided that there is no point living a miserable life of hate.

The leader of the dragons eventually killed this dragon. That leader then went on a purge to eliminate the human dragons that possessed their powers. Then those humans who held the powers of the dragons stood up and fought back, and eventually were able to slay the dragon king. The king cursed the humans and vowed vengeance.

The humans who were born under this dragon would all forever be known as a group of mercenaries hired for the purpose to fight against dragons who got out of hand. Hidden within the land of Whirlpool, their bloodlines spoken as Metsuryu Mado: they are the Dragon Slayers.

Unfortunately, the king's vengeance would resonate throughout the years, even to today.

XXX

"Is he close by?" A ninja asks another one through the headphones attached to his left ear.

"Yes. He's right above us." That same ninja replies, looking up into the sky. A person wearing the ninja headband of Kiri crossed out stands on top of a dragon. This dragon is a special type of air wyvern, with wings for arms and only a tail to stand on.

"What element?" The first ninja asks.

"Apparently, fire." – Ninja 2

"Is the ninja on top a white haired beauty?" – Ninja 1

"Shut up and stop performing 20 questions! This is serious!" The person shouts, now revealing them to be a teen with red hair and a teen with bright auburn hair. Both have violet eyes and the same skin color. The red headed one is dressed in a dark red outfit while the other is in a purple one.

Her yelling causes the dragon above to notice their position. It flies down and lands before the humans, who hid within the mountains. The ninja hops off and initiates a jutsu, which causes clouds to form and lightning to come down.

Both ninjas slide away and escape the attack, glaring heavily at their targets. Although the red head is the one with the serious look while the guy sees to have this dazed lazy glance. The kiri ninja says, "So, they sent you guys huh?"

"I've grown sick of facing you fake dragons." The wyvern says as it looks at them. "You're the third group to come after us."

"We'll make you pay for killing Ryuhi and Hyosei!" The red head yells at them, as water comes up through her pores. She then sends a splash of water towards them, but the dragon flies up above it. She then flies up on top of the water. "Suiryu no Suidaruma! (Water Dragon's Water Pillar)"

She then slips through the water as it pounds the dragon and knocks it out of the sky. The dragon releases flames that blast the woman out from her watery tower. The auburn haired ninja leaps towards the dragon and kicks it in the head, using enhanced fire strength. They all land, with the purple ninja helping his partner. "You okay?"

"Yeah, thanks brother." She says, smiling as they look at each other. She then begins to cough a bit, blood slipping a bit through her lips as she does.

"I'll take you to safety before-" Before he could finish the Kiri ninja comes up behind him and slashes down at him with his enlarged shuriken. The purple ninja falls down to the ground, dropping his little sister.

"Brother!" She calls out, hoping he would survive the attack. She then glares at the enemy, and opens her mouth, shouting, "Suiryu no Hoko!"

A maelstrom of water blows out of her mouth and blasts the ninja away. The wyvern comes up and slams her down to the mountain's base. She passes out from the impact, blood leaking from a wound on her head. The wyvern crawls over to her. "That's one down."

"DAMN YOU!" The purple ninja shouts, soaring down towards the wyvern and slamming it down with both hands. The wyvern whips its tail around to hit the dragon slayer, but he ducks underneath for the first and rolls to the left for the second. The wyvern then swings its right claw arm at the human, who dips again.

The dragon slayer then blocks a strike at his stomach from its tail and slides past it to reach the body, performing an ice lariat that knocks it to the ground. He then jumps up to avoid another claw attack, and punches it in the face. The dragon then tries to fly away, but his opponent has other plans. He jumps up and grabs hold of the dragon's head to knee it in the back, causing it to crash into the ground. This breaks the ground they stood on.

Upon landing the auburn ninja then grabs its right wing arm and kicks down on it, surrounding his feet in flames. This snaps the bone off, dislocating the arm, and causing the dragon to cry out once more. He then continues to torment the beast even further, not noticing the Kiri ninja sneaking up behind him.

"DIE!" He lunges at the purple ninja, just as he breaks the other arm. Too bad for him the silver ninja back smacks the guy in the mouth with his elbows, turning his front teeth into brittle. He falls back on his butt, clutching his mouth full of broken teeth.

The dragon slayer summons a sword of ice and flips it backwards. He then lifts it up and prepares to stab him in the face, when the Kiri ninja shouts, "WAIT! That's not necessary!"

"Is that so?" The dragon slayer questions him. He gives out a much serious expression than just a minute ago.

"You want to kill the dragon right? That's why they hired you for this job, eh? You won't gain any profit from killing me!" He pleads as best as he could, although it seems hard since he lost most of his yellow teeth. No wonder they broke so easily.

As he spoke the wyvern rises up to finish him off, but gets blown back by a fire blast from the mouth. The ninja lifts his right hand to stab into the slayer's chest, but his arm gets cut off by the ice sword. The dragon slayer then turns his attention to him, and stabs him in the left side of his head with the ice sword.

With that distraction gone, he turns his attention back to the dragon, and punches it square in the face, as it tries to stab him from behind, using a flaming fist. He then kicks it in the chin and hops behind it. While surrounded in flames the dragon slayer grabs the dragon's arms and lifts it up, so it can knee it in the back and pull out its joints once more. As the flames intensify his disguise comes off, revealing his spiky auburn hair.

The guy then pulls back on the arms, causing the creature even more pain. Finally, the dragon slayer kicks it in the back, this time pulling its arms out once and for all. Blood squirts out from the bones and the meat of the creature, as it falls down to the ground. The dragon slayer tosses the arms away, and then kicks the beast in the face again.

"You… You are indeed a terrible monster. I haven't seen such ruthlessness in any human ever since the Uchiha leader." The wyvern mutters as the dragon slayer walks over to its body.

As the man squishes its head into bones and guts, with flames surrounding his feet, a closer look can view the dragon slayer as Yusei. He then walks over to his little sister, who is shown now to be Kushina.

Later…

"So after you tracked the renegade ninja from Kiri and the wyvern class dragon siding with him you slain them both without trouble?" A man with a lion robe draped over his back looks forward at the two ninjas in front of him. One of them is Yusei and the other is Kushina.

"Correct!" Yusei shouts, smiling as he leans back in his chair. This is a totally different personality he holds compared to before.

"Well I commend you on your efforts Yusei, but you Kushina are disappointing!" He says, turning his attention to Yusei's little sister. "Putting your life in danger like that and forcing Yusei to take on most of the fight is signs of a weak slayer!"

"Yeah, whatever." She states, turning away from the man.

"TAKE THIS SERIOUSLY! As your father, and leader of the Land of Whirlpool Keota Uzumaki, I cannot allow my children to be lazy idiots! Do you know how people will see me as?" He shouts at the kids.

Kushina and Yusei look at each other, and then at their father. Yusei then says, "An asshole?"

Keota punches his son in the face, knocking him through the wall. "You are dismissed. I'll decide your punishment and next mission later."

"Yes sir!" Yusei jokes, standing up from the rubble without care or harm. Kushina snickers a bit.

Later the two siblings walk through their village hand in hand, Butaigakure no Sato. Everyone here wears the headband of the village, with the image of a small scratch mark on it. The siblings walk down the street to find a nearby ramen shop, and stop by to get some eats.

"Delicious! Ramen is surely the best meal!" Kushina says as she slurps her favorite meal, Miso Ramen.

"I don't know. I could make a much better bowl of noodles. Or better yet, takoyaki! Or yakiniku!" Yusei states to his sister, eating the meat inside the bowl and nothing else.

"Brother, I respect you as a chef, but there's nothing else you could make that would satisfy my pallet like ramen." She proclaims, finishing her first bowl. "More!"

"I would make a great chef if I didn't have to become an engine of destruction." Yusei mutters, twirling around in his noodle and broth.

"Well, that's what you get for being a 'purveyor of justice' brother." She tells him.

Today has been Yusei's 57th finished mission. Ever since he has been approved for a ninja license Yusei has been working his way up the ninja ladder. Ever since he witnessed his best friend Dante get killed by a group of dragons just for the fun of it, he has grown an immense hatred for dragons, and even resents anything dragon related. This has led him to become a serious, merciless killer to anyone who would side with dragons and kill. Then the day came when he almost killed his sister during one of his hateful rampages, and discovered his talent for cooking. This has opened his eyes, for he believed he could only work, as a murdering weapon, and that there's more to his life than just bringing justice.

After that he started to lighten up and take after his little sister's slacker take on life. Being a lazy genius he has amazed and ticked off the rest of his family and friends; one minute he's taking down a dragon that could kill a room full of fifty trained assassins, and the next he's taking a nap in public in his underwear. He has also started taking cooking classes, and is now on the level of a five star restaurant. Although even though he has spent more time cooking his mission ranks go to D = 2, C = 13, B = 14, A = 8, S = 20.

Kushina has completed her 20th mission today. With her family illness, that Yusei luckily didn't receive, she has worked her way to making sure she isn't ignored. This tends to get skewed whenever she pulls a prank on others, seeing as she doesn't care how she gets her attention. There was this one time she got everyone in town to get their slacks wet, by the crotch area, and made them think they went while dressed, and another time she loosened all the screws in the school and mission office. Despite this she is determined to prove herself a great warrior, maybe even the greatest one in history.

Recently Kushina has lost respect for her father after he held no care for her when she was almost killed by her brother accidentally, and actually yelled at her for being a weakling. But her relationship with her brother grew when he took care of her, and was glad he was a better person. Even with her father cursing them for their carelessness, Kushina continues to strive as the person she is now, with this mission record: D = 10, C = 5, B = 1, A = 0, S = 4.

"Oi, Yusei!" Someone shouts, grasping the fire-ice slayer's attention. He looks up to see a girl his age with long black hair that reaches down to her elbows, tan skin like she's been bathing in sunlight a lot, and hazel eyes. Her outfit consists of jean suspenders over a sleeveless shirt, and ankle socks over sandals. "I heard you came back finally."

"You know all of my missions involve that type of situation Kotoha." Yusei says to the woman. He then notices she has the top of her shirt open, willingly exposing some cleavage. "You trying to impress someone?"

At those words she buttons up and walks off, leaving him and Kushina alone. Kushina finishes her meal and looks at him, asking, "You know Kane likes you, right?"

"I told you, I only have interested in girls that are tall, and/or have white/silver hair." He replies, giving his empty bowl back to the chef.

"You're going to be waiting a long time then, because no girl your age will have white hair who isn't a Christmas cake." – Kushina

"Shut up! I'll find one, okay?" – Yusei

The Next Morning…

Yusei and Kushina are in their father's office, the man themselves sitting before them. He hands Yusei the slip, which will inform them of their next mission. "Today you two will seek out and capture a nearby spy."

"A spy?" Kushina asks, a little curious about this mission.

"We have reports that there is someone wandering around the bridge leading to Whirlpool. There isn't any visual aid on what he looks like, but we do know of one location he may be in." Keota finishes.

"So we just find him and bring him here?" – Kushina

"Exactly. Go on."

After receiving their mission they head out the door and leave in search of the spy. After reaching the entrance to the Land of Whirlpool, which is connected to the mainland by a bridge, Yusei and Kushina split up to cover more ground. Yusei checks the perimeter of the bridge for any traces. Kushina meanwhile checks the nearby towns for anyone who could have met a mysterious person, which is rather open-minded since there are allot of suspicious people that come through most of those towns.

Meanwhile…

A tall man wrapped in drapes walks towards the bridge that connects the Land of Whirlpool to the Shinobi Continents. He pulls off his hood, revealing himself to be Sheji. "This here is the bridge that leads to Whirlpool, cock. Proceed with the plan!"

"Let's do this." Honatsu says, walking past him towards the bridge.

"Remember to do your part." Genbu growls at Sheji as he follows Honatsu.

Two other mysterious hooded figures walk past Sheji towards the bridge, following the first two in. Sheji then laughs as they walk towards the Land of Whirlpool, and then coughs. "Gotta work on that, rooster!"

"What are you doing here?" Yusei shouts at Sheji, leaping out to drop kick him. Sheji lifts his hand and blocks his attack, pushing him back into the air. Yusei lands and glares at the weirdo with the glowing eyes.

As Yusei takes a closer look at him, he could see that he has a sort of black and white shogun armor on complete with furry ends on some cloths. His helmet, which looks like one of those Roman gladiator helmets with the fur on the back and designed to resemble a dragon head, covers most of his face, leaving only his glowing serpent-like eyes and mouth full of fangs visible.

"Who the heck are you, hen?" Sheji questions Yusei, who removes his ninja gear to show his face.

"In death there is justice, and only in death can one receive justice. The Death Knight Omega; Yusei Uzumaki!" Yusei introduces himself, in a way one can only find in Super Sentai.

"Never heard of ya, but I can't let you just leave if you're an Uzumaki, cock." Sheji says, holding his right hand up. A sort of yellow energy swirls around his hand. "Aidajuuouken! (Spatial Beast King Fist)"

"Cock? What are you, a prostitute?" Yusei dashes towards Sheji as he fires several beams at him by punching. Yusei slides underneath with his ice powers freezing the ground, and zips over to the weirdo with an ice axe. Some pieces of his hair fly off from Sheji's attack.

Sheji blocks the attack with his left hand. This causes the ice to shatter to pieces. Yusei isn't that surprised, but he didn't see that coming at all. Sheji then kicks Yusei and punches him in the face. Yusei slides back towards him, but when Sheji stomps on the ground and breaks the ice he trips. "Hoko!"

Yusei fires a subzero ice cold wind at Sheji, but the ground rises up around him to take the hit. Sheji then eyes Yusei. "Ice Dragon Slayer? Those are rather rare."

"I've got more than just ice." Yusei gathers fire to his feet and takes off, tackling Sheji. "Ensaiga!"

Yusei blows Sheji away and knocks him into a boulder, causing it to explode on contact. Yusei then summons flames around his body and charges at him, but something blows him back into the air. Sheji then walks out of the rubble, holding his glowing right hand up before him. "You're no match for Sheji, rooster. My powers far surpass yours. Not being a dragon I'm much more suited to fighting you, chicken."

"So, you're not a dragon in human disguise… Actually, you smell kind of like a chicken, or a snake…" Says Yusei after sniffing the air around Sheji.

"Kua ha ha ha! (Coughs) That sense of smell is easy to use for a dragon slayer like you." Sheji says to Yusei, gathering energy around his fists. "Kuukandan!"

The energy gathers to his palms, and fires out as a yellow spiraling sphere. Yusei forms an ice hammer and swings at it, yelling, "Ice Hammer!"

But the hammer shatters to pieces, and blows Yusei away. "What the?"

"Your powers come from the earth, from nature, chicken. If the power of a dragon is the power of Earth, then the power of a basilisk is space!" Sheji states as he fires another Kuukandan. Yusei summons flames over his body to fly over the attack, and molds ice around his arms. Since the flames are cut off from his shoulders, he doesn't have to worry about the ice melting too quickly.

"I wasn't hoping to get serious on you, but I guess I'll have to break your bones before I can drag you back home! Super Dragon Mode!" Yusei shouts as he descends towards Sheji with a sword of ice attached to his left arm. His eyes change from violet to green and his skin gains scales. 'Even if he can control space, I can quickly overpower him with Dragonforce.'

He swings down at Sheji, who blocks by grabbing the sword with one hand. Yusei blinks in shock, even as Sheji summons more energy around him. The dragon slayer is forced back, and one punch from Sheji disperses his flames and ice, and sends him soaring through the air. Kushina grabs him with a giant hand made of water.

"Yusei, are you okay?" She asks him, rushing to his side.

"Where were you?" – Yusei

"I found a lead to who the person might be, and I was going to pursue it before I saw the battle going on. Who is he?" – Kushina

"There won't be any point in dragging me to your home, since you won't have one any longer." Sheji's words cause Kushina and Yusei to glare at him in shock.

"Wha…what do you mean by that?" Yusei questions, as he gathers fire around his body.

"You're about to die now, so there's no point in telling you, chicken!" Sheji fires Aidajuuouken at the dragon slayers. Yusei uses his flames to soar through the sky, while Kushina dips and rolls out of the way.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Kushina summons four more clones of her, and slides over to Sheji with her water bending skills. (I mean water dragon skills; sorry about the Avatar reference there.) She then spreads her arms and summons water around them, creating wings to fly with. "Suiryu no Yokugeki!"

Each clone flies towards Sheji, crashing and knocking him back. Kushina makes a final tackle and knocks Sheji into the air. Kushina then skids and crashes into a rock, coughing up blood from that last impact.

"Let's see you escape this; Ryuuseigun!" Yusei holds his hands together by the bottom of the palm, and gathers fire in between it, similar to how Goku uses Kamehameha. He then releases several streams of fire at Sheji, which explode on contact. The basilisk then crashes to the ground, causing a large explosion. Yusei turns around immediately and poses, holding his right hand up into the air while making a v with his fingers, for victory. "That takes care of that."

"Brother, weren't we supposed to capture him?" Kushina asks him, as she stands up and brushes her clothes off. She walks over to her brother, sighing and stretching.

"Oh yeah… Well we could just say he spontaneously combusted." Yusei states, as he turns to his sister.

"That's the dumbest thing I ever heard-" She didn't have a chance to finish her words, for a beam of yellow energy blows through her chest. It soars through the air towards the bridge, blowing it to pieces. There is a major gap between Yusei, Sheji and Kushina, and the only part of the bridge that's still intact.

"Ah! I destroyed the bridge, cock!" Sheji stands up while retreating his left hand, which radiates with energy. Kushina falls down towards Yusei, who reaches out and catches her. She passes out from the pain of the wound, as she vomits blood. "Oh well. The dragon slayers are trapped, and that's good enough, chicken."

"You…" Yusei grits his teeth in anger, as he clutches his sister's head. He places her down onto the ground face up, forming ice around the oozing wound in her stomach. Flames erupt from his body like a volcano as he shouts, "HOW DARE YOU DO THAT TO MY SISTER?"

Yusei charges at Sheji, screaming out of pure anger. He then punches Sheji in the face, but gets blocked by his fist. The fire fails to even singe his fingertips. Sheji places his hand onto Yusei's stomach, saying, "Aidahakke!"

A force of energy blows Yusei back into a wall, where he crashes into the ground and causes an impact. He stands back up to face his opponent, blood coming from the wound in his stomach and beside his forehead.

"Damn. I haven't been pushed into a corner like this in a while… Who are you, and what are you planning?" Yusei questions him after wiping the blood from his lips.

"I am Sheji, master of the Basilisk clan, chicken. In order for the plan to succeed the dragon slayers have to be taken care of." Sheji answers.

"Why? What do you got against dragons, not that I'd ever call myself one?" Yusei charges at Sheji and fires several ice pikes at Sheji.

"The world has no room in the sky for real dragons and fake dragons! Han Juuryoku Gai! (Anti Gravity Armor)" Sheji summons a protective barrier of golden energy, which repel the ice attacks. Yusei releases Karyu no Hoko, but this fails miserably as it doesn't even reach Sheji.

"Damn you! Ryuseigan!" Yusei prepares for another one of his special attacks, but Sheji dashes before him at high speed. "What?"

"Disappear." He punches him, using Aidajuuouken to strike at point blank range. Several holes come out from his back, as he collapses slowly to the ground. Sheji laughs after Yusei collapses, and then coughs to clear his throat. "I've done my task, so I should leave now. But I should make sure they don't survive."

"You bastard…" Sheji turns around to where the bridge was, and Kushina can be seen rising up and clutching her wounded shoulder. "I'll make you pay, you bastard!"

As her anger flares, water splashes from her body and rages like a typhoon. "I'll crush you to pieces!"

"Oh? Giving humans the power of dragons is like trying to make a piece of crap shine, hen. You humans are just worms; there's nothing you can do." Sheji remarks, walking away from Yusei's body towards Sheji.

But his legs stop suddenly, and he falls flat on his face. "What the cock?"

Yusei has both his hands grasping both his ankles, preventing him from reaching his sister. The bleeding from his wounds has stopped, but the damage has made it impossible for him to stand at the moment. "I won't let you hurt my sister, or anyone in that village!"

"I told you; a fake dragon has no way of surpassing me, rooster!" Sheji kicks Yusei in the face and stands up. He then grabs him by the collar and throws him in the air. With Yusei in his sight he prepares an enlarged Kuukandan. "The finisher: Super Kuukandan!"

"Aqua Jet!" Kushina gathers the water around her, and has it propel herself in the air. With this speed she grabs Yusei and avoids Sheji's fatal blow. The two land away from Sheji. "It's no use brother. We can't hurt him like this. We need a new plan."

"It's useless to fight him, but it's useless to run either, not if he plans to kill everyone in that village." Yusei says, pushing her aside to stand up on his own. He then clenches his fists tight, gathering his chakra and releasing it. "I'll do it."

"Yusei! What are you doing?" She questions him, looking into his green eyes.

"Eh? What are they planning, chicken?" – Sheji

"This is the ultimate Hadouryu technique. It closes the gap between a dragon slayer's human and dragon blood, and allows their dragon powers to make them into one. I'll give up my humanity because of this, and I'll never be accepted back in the village again, but I refuse to allow myself to die by your hands and let you kill Kushina and everyone else!" Yusei holds his hands out, extending his index and middle fingers.

"Yusei! There has to be another way!" Kushina reaches out to her brother to try and stop him, but her wound begins to throb and brings her down to her knees.

"It doesn't matter what technique you come up with, rooster. I'll plow through it with the power of space! Aidajuuouken!" Sheji punches at Yusei, releasing streams of light at him.

"Hadouryu Kinjitsu: Joutenryu no Hoko!" Yusei stabs his chest and rib area with his index and middle fingers, piercing through the flesh and hitting four special pressure points. At that instance he injects chakra into these points, and even more chakra releases from his body. One side of his body is engulfed in flames, while the other half releases a blizzard of snow. Yusei's eyes glow brightly as he summons this energy, and his hair turns silver.

Yusei screams as he releases more energy, and charges at Sheji. With his left arm invoked in fire he slugs Sheji in the chest, breaking through his armor. Feathers and blood burst out when he draws his fist back. Yusei then follows up with a frozen kick, sending Sheji skidding across the ground.

"What kind of power is that? No dragon slayer could do that before, chicken!" Sheji looks up into the boy's eyes, and notices those green eyes of his have become colder than before. 'It's like I'm staring into a real dragon's eyes.'

"In order to bestow justice to those who bring wrong, I will defeat you by risking everything I am!" The silver haired dragon slayer roars and lifts his hands up, before firing a ball of flames at Sheji, who evades and fires Kuukandan. Yusei summons ice all around him, including his feet so he could skate out of the way. The ice also forms into a sword around his left arm.

"I won't fail in my plan!" Sheji stands up and lifts the rocks around him to fly at Yusei. The dragon slayer spins out of the way of two, before cutting down the third. Sheji backs up to a boulder, feeling trapped.

Yusei charges at Sheji while lifting his right arm, shooting several fireballs at him. Sheji counters with his anti gravity armor to block the projectiles, but then Yusei shoves his sword at him, which cuts through the right side of his cheek and teeth, out the other side, and stabbing into the boulder.

Sheji pulls his mouth out, resulting in a lot of blood and chunks of teeth spilling, and grabs his left arm to pull it down. He then grabs him by the back of the neck, and shoves him deep into the ground. Yusei manages to break free, by discarding his armor, and releasing Karyu no Hoko in Sheji's face.

'He's definitely changed! I'll be unable to keep up at this moment!' – Sheji

"Reito Punch! Hono Punch!" Yusei punches Sheji in the stomach first, and then uppercuts him to send the guy rocketing. Violent flames gather around Yusei as he prepares for the finisher. "Guren Seinaru Houou! (Crimson Lotus Sacred Phoenix)"

Yusei flies towards Sheji while surrounded in flames, shaped like a phoenix. He then pierces through him, flying out the other side still ablaze. Sheji crashes to the ground and explodes, growling and moaning in pain. Yusei lands on the ground, expelling his fire, and looks back to see Sheji still in one piece. "You got to be kidding me."

Instead of answering him, because his mouth is torn, Sheji creates a portal out of the matter before him, and crawls into it. Yusei sighs deeply, and smiles as he watches him leave. "He won't be coming back anytime soon."

"Yusei! How could you do that? Do you know what that'll entail for you?" Kushina asks him, slowly walking towards her brother while grasping her wound.

"I know. It's okay." Kushina punches Yusei in the stomach, tears coming down her eyes.

"It's not okay, you idiot! You have to eat humans now! The village will never take you in again! I may never see you again!" She cries out. Yusei then hugs her, hoping to silence her crying. This only lessens it.

"I'm sorry. I had no choice. You and those people in our village are more important to me than any white haired girl or food I could create." Yusei tells his sister, who continues to cry in his arms. He then looks out at the bridge, and sighs with depression. "Let's go. I'll take you to a nearby hotel."

"But what about you!" – Kushina

"I'll hide somewhere for the rest of my life, protecting you and our village from the shadows…" – Yusei

Yusei takes her sister to the nearest village, while he retreated to a lesser ninja village. He tosses away his hitai-e and hid deep within the forest region, keeping himself away from anything and everything that might get hurt by him. He figures that if he supports himself with fire and ice he could reduce his craving, but for how long is a mystery to him. He wouldn't need to act anytime soon, since he struck Sheji with his strongest attack he believed he wouldn't have to worry about him any time soon, or even at all.

But a month after staying in hiding, he reads a piece of thrown away newspaper that tells him all of Whirlpool has been destroyed. After checking the date he realizes that it was published the day after he took his sister to another village. That would mean him stopping Sheji was nothing more than a delay on his part.

What he didn't know is that Sheji's job was only to make sure those four from earlier make it to the village, and that no one else can come out; destroying the bridge was the only way he could do that.

Currently, Yusei is still within the forest, setting fire to anything he sees. His anger at losing his friends and family, by which he means Kushina, has consumed his better judgment. Even as people come in to stop the fire, they are nothing to Yusei's strength.

"I'll make that guy pay! I'll roast him like a Christmas turkey!" He yells, roaring as he summons more flames from his body. As he rampages through the woods, a figure follows him from behind a tree. Eventually Yusei sniffs him out, and turns to the guy yelling, "Who's there!"

The person comes out from the forest and approaches him, revealing himself to be 16-year-old Manabu. He has on a smaller version of his normal casual outfit and the sealed state of the Twilight Star in his right hand. He has the same yellow stripes on his black spiky hair as well.

"Are you the one causing this forest fire?" – Manabu

"Stay away unless you want to die!" Warns Yusei, releasing a stream of fire at him. Manabu blocks the stream of fire using the Phantom Sword.

"I want you to stop before you end up hurting someone!" Manabu summons the Chaos Sword Final Arcana, and engages Yusei in a relatively short battle.

Thanks to Yusei being blinded by his own hatred, and Manabu having more fighting experience he is able to lock Yusei into a losing position. Afterwards Yusei eventually calms down, and bursts out crying. He then explains to Manabu about his situation, and what happened to his entire home village and Kushina.

Manabu then hands out to Yusei a newspaper informing people of a possible survivor of the Whirlpool's destruction. This brightens the dragon and gives him a sense of hope. He then moves further away from the forest he's in now towards the Land of Earth, and pleads to his new friend Manabu to go find this survivor.

Manabu's 2-month search for the survivor leads him to Konoha, where he gets caught in a war between Iwa and them. A battle leads him unconscious on the battlefield, where Kushina picks him up and takes him with her to Konoha. Manabu then tells Kushina about Yusei and how he worries for her, and stays in Konoha to protect her.

Kushina then tells Manabu about what she did before reaching Konoha.

3 Months Ago…

'Keep running! Keep running!' She yells constantly in her head. Kushina Uzumaki is running over top of water within the Land of Water to find a place to hide. Following her is a hooded person with glowing blue eyes.

Kushina eventually comes before Kirigakure, running past the guards. One of them manages to grab her, stopping the woman from moving any further. "Where do you think you're going! You can't just enter without-

"I need your help! Someone's trying to kill me!" She tells him, standing up and grabbing his arms. At that moment the hooded person comes before them, gathering the Chunin guards' attention. "Him!"

"So?" – Chunin

"Tetsuryu no Hoko!" The person opens their mouth and fires a tornado of metal shards at them. Kushina runs away, leaving the Chunin to suffer that attack. Both of them fall down, as the metal user follows after Kushina.

'This is the Land of Water! Why can't I find any water?' Kushina growls in her head before she finds a convenience store. Kushina then enters the store, and finds plenty of bottled water. "How much for the water?"

"800 yen." The convenience store guy says to her.

"Hachi Hyaku! Not in this lifetime!" She complains, turning around to walk away. The door blows open and reveals the person following her.

The person removes his hood and comes out to be Kane, the girl they met earlier in their village. "You thought you could get away from us, could you?"

"Sold!" Kushina quickly pays for four bottles, and drinks them all. She then turns to face Kane, determined to face her this time. "I should have known it was you all along, after seeing that last metal attack. How could you sell out our village? Our own kind!"

"Hey, this is not a meet and greet. Buy something or get lost you hooligans!" The storeowner tells the girls. Kane faces him and throws a punch, stretching her arm and turning it into a steel blade. He ducks down and avoids it, before running away screaming.

"This isn't something as simple as a betrayal. It's bigger than both of us." – Kane

"No, I want to know! Some of those people they were trying to kill were your family too!" Kushina sends a stream of water at Kane, which floods the entire building. Soon the glass gives and she slips out. Kushina jumps out of the store and confronts the metal woman.

"I was promised that if I helped him destroy the dragon slayers he would spare me and let me leave a normal quiet life." Kane explains to the woman.

"Him? Who's him?" – Kushina

"That's none of your business! Tetsuryu no So Kishin!" She extends her right arm at her, creating multiple lances that jab into her body.

Kushina falls back to the ground, clutching her body in pain. She even spits up blood due to her wounds, and illness. "Suiryu no Naginata!"

She summons a halberd made of water and throws it at her. The water weapon explodes into droplets before it could even reach her. "If you can't control your state of mind and body then there's no point; that's the major downside of having the water dragon slayer style."

"Aqua Jet!" Kushina flies out of the village over the gate, using that water lance as a distraction. She knows full well that she doesn't have the strength to stop her, which is why she has to keep her occupied and wasting energy before she could reach a safer haven, or she tires out.

Two Days Later…

Kushina Uzumaki makes it to a bordering village nearby the village hidden in the leaves. She is at her wits end having run all day from her pursuer, or at least she hopes it's still one. There's no way she could face someone similar to what Yusei fought.

Kushina collapses onto the ground, looking back at her feet. There are blisters and wounds carved into her feet all over, having lost her sandals some time ago while running. 'At least she's gone…'

"This little game is at its end." Kane says as she walks up to her. She forms her right arm into a blade.

"Why won't you leave me alone!" – Kushina

"I can't fail in my mission. If I do then I'll be killed. If anyone has to die, it should be Yusei-kun's sister." – Kane

"This is what happens when you're obsessed with someone; you lose sight of what's really important. If you really cared about Yusei you would never do something like this!" Kushina yells at her, summoning water to shoot. She fails due to her tiredness.

"I don't care; Yusei belongs to me!" Kane lifts her arm up and prepares to slash down at her, but a kunai is thrown down at her that grabs her attention. "Who's there?"

A man appears right where one kunai has landed; he has a Jonin vest and outfit on, blond spiky hair that stands like a Super Saiyan, and cerulean blue eyes. He looks just like Naruto. Kushina blushes a little as she looks at his face, remarked about how cool he looks.

"Stay out of this! It has nothing to do with you!" Kane yells at the blond.

"I come home from a mission and see two girls together like this. I wouldn't care about a situation normally; my only excuse is that you're trying to kill a injured person." He says, walking over towards Kushina.

"This is none of your business! You don't know anything about us!" Kane dashes towards the blond Konoha Ninja and swings her sword at him. He throws a kunai at her face, but she bites down and eats it.

To avoid damage he grabs Kushina and leaps away from her. He lands a few feet away from her. "Who is she?"

"She was involved in a plot that destroyed everyone in the Whirlpool continent. Me and my brother are the only ones left alive." She explains, looking up into her savior's eyes.

"So it's true then… I didn't think there would be survivors." He says, turning his attention to Kane. She charges after him with a murderous glare. "So she has one of those Hadouryu bloodline powers too, right?"

"That's right. She has the metal dragon slayer power. Kane can eat metal and use it in battle." Kushina tells the man.

"Then I guess I'll have to use that." He says, holding up a special three-pronged kunai and tossing it at Kane. She grabs the kunai by the handle and lifts it up, glaring down at the man.

"Didn't you hear what she said? Any type of metal is useless against me. It's nothing more than an afternoon snack." She says to him, biting down on the tip of the kunai.

"I heard." In a flash, the shinobi disappears, appearing before the woman like he was already there. In his right hand is the Rasengan, which he uses to strike into her stomach. The attack begins to spin violently, causing her to rotate accordingly and blast off. She continues until she hits a boulder, busting completely through it.

"Amazing…" – Kushina

"I'll take you to Konoha. There should be a seal there for me to use." He runs over to Kushina and grabs her, and in less time it took to reach her, he disappears.

The two of them appear inside his estate, far away from that metal dragon slayer. The male ninja places her on a bed, leaving her there to rest. He digs under the bed to get a medical kit, handing it over to Kushina. She takes it and says, "Thank you. I'll take this over."

"No problem. I'll be right back. I got to clear up a loose end." He disappears once more, leaving her alone.

With Kane she is walking towards Konoha, hiding behind a tree to keep herself away. "What the hell were those techniques? I need another approach."

"You won't get another chance to." A voice calls out from behind Kane. She turns around in time to see the blond ninja jabbing two Rasengan into her body, blowing twin holes in her. She collapses to the ground in pain, bleeding and out of strength.

"But…how…" – Kane

"You were marked by my special kunai the moment you touched it." He says, pointing to the girl's hand. That hand where she grabbed the kunai with is marked with the same markings his kunai has.

"I see… You're the Yellow Flash I heard of… Minato…" These are her last words before her heart gave out, causing her death. The blond stares down at her body, right before he lifts her up over his shoulders so he could take her to Konoha.

* * *

Yusei: That brings an end to this chapter. Next time we'll get back to the main story, and take a look at what Haku is up to after returning to Kiri.

Kenshin: I hear he also gets a new weapon.

Yusei: HEY! Don't jinx it!


	25. The Spider Water Kabuto Gauntlet

_**Naruto and The Water Princess**_

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Fairy Tail, One Piece, Rave or that other one.

Kenshin: This chapter is a little different. It's not a Ninja Gaiden, which is a side story to explain the plot a little or get away from the main character, but it's a focus on someone besides Naruto and Sasuke.

Julia: Begin the story!

Manabu: Before we do that, we present to you an Omake. This one is different also, as it is a preview to a fanfiction idea – a Naruto x Super Sentai x Kamen Rider crossover, and maybe others.

Omake-

"That…Kage Bunshin technique…is real hard…" Naruto mutters, as he lays on the ground tired as hell. He then crawls over to the scroll and looks over the next technique. "Huh? This is a sealing thingamajig… Let's see…"

Naruto bites his finger and spreads blood on it, causing the seal to give way. It then presents a weird wristwatch. It looks a little too advanced in technology to exist here, but nevertheless it's here. "What is this?"

Naruto picks up the tag attached to it, and reads, 'Thank you for receiving the Ninja Henshin Device Hentaiger. Before using it we will go through the activation steps: first attach the Hentaiger to your arm. Either one will do.'

Following its orders Naruto puts it on, and wraps the Velcro together. He then goes to the instructions and reads, 'Second, flip the guard panel to reveal numbers 0 – 9, along with two other buttons marked 'SSS' and 'DNAR'. Press the latter button.'

"Latter? Does that mean the button last mentioned?" Naruto flips open the panel and presses the DNAR button. Suddenly he feels something pierce into his skin, and shouts, "AH! Fuck!"

'It will take over half a day for your DNA to be installed inside the device. After the wait period is over and your DNA is programmed into the Chakra Suits, you can press the buttons '352' to activate the powers installed. Thank you for choosing to become the Nindo Sentai Shadow V.' Naruto finishes reading the paper, and then takes the device off of him.

"Well, this was a bust. I don't need it." Finding no interest in it, Naruto reseals the device back inside the scroll. By the time he finishes, Iruka arrives on the scene.

* * *

Three Years Later…

"If it comes to this, we may have to use those things." The Tsuchikage states to the rest of the Gokage: Tsunade, Mei, A, and Gaara.

"What things?" Tsunade asks, as her bodyguard presents to her the Hentaiger. "What is this?"

"Before the Shinobi continents were constructed together by the Gokage, a stranger from another plane of existence appeared and handed each of the original Kage a surprisingly technologically advance device. It is able to transform a ninja of even lower strength into a warrior surpassing a Jonin." A explains to the female Hokage. He then raises his left arm, revealing his own Hentaiger. "These were their help in standing against the Biju, and other monsters."

"Other monsters? There's something worse than the Nine Tailed Fox?" – Tsunade

"For now, it's best to use these against the Akatsuki since we have them." Mei adds, showing her own Hentaiger.

"Does everyone know about this but me!" – Tsunade

"This is a secret that is passed down to all members of the Gokage from the last to the next. Maybe you were too busy drinking and trying to find a man to pay attention." The Tsuchikage says to her before laughing. She was just about to leap at him before Gaara restrained her with his sand.

"Calm down, Hokage-dono. I didn't know about this until just now either." Gaara tells her, releasing his sand.

"Just attach it and press DNAR. You can transform with it after it installs your DNA." A says to her.

"Fine." Tsunade and Gaara prepare to do what he said when hers makes a weird beeping. "Huh? It won't work?"

"Huh? But that could only mean the last person to use it still has their DNA installed, and hasn't died." Mei says, looking at her Hentaiger.

"Eh? But all the other Hokage are dead! Who could have used it?" – Tsunade

* * *

_**Chapter 24: The Kabuto - Water - Spider Gauntlet**_

Around the same time as Naruto's hateful break out, Haku is in Kiri with his friend Kenta. They are in a steel mill factory forging a special type of weapon. It is in the shape of a lance, but it lacks the blade at the end, and possesses a curvy triangular like figure not that far from the tip. Being an expert blacksmith Kenta could easily make any type of weapon for himself or his friends, making him more of a craftsman than a ninja.

Haku injects some of his chakra into the weapon after Kenta removes it from the boiling hot fryer to a table. At the same time as this Kenta sprinkles a sort of powder over it, causing the lance to glow. After a while, Haku removes his hands and says, "That completes the prototype. Soon the Sea Lancer will be usable."

Kenta nods and looks at him, taking a step back from the heated weapon. Haku then performs a few hand seals, and blows a water style jutsu at the weapon. The water turns to steam as it cools the lance down. After waiting a few minutes Haku picks it up and swings it around. "Perfect. Now I can match Sasuke and his Decalogue. Naruto won't have to fight alone."

Kenta performs a few hand seals and ends with a tiger seal, initiating a jutsu. A gentle wind blows towards Haku, who closes his eyes he smiles as he receives it. He then says, "I know. It needs a few minutes to finish cooling. Thanks Kenta."

Haku then places the lance down beside some other weapons and exits the steel mill. Kenta then sighs and hoists a hammer over his shoulders. He walks over to a set of shuriken and gets to work.

Elsewhere, walking out from her office is Mei Terumi. She walks over to a nearby dango store and purchases a stick of dumplings. 'Being a shadow is such hard work. As much as I like the job, I won't be missing doing paperwork when I've retired.'

She then wanders aimlessly around the village, being greeted friendly by the many civilians around her. Mei then stops by the village entrance, already finished with her dango stick. 'Still, it's too early to choose a successor. Akatsuki is still around, and I have to protect this village. I'll leave Tsunade to protect Naruto until our major problems are solved.'

Mei continues to walk while thinking of her young future husband. A sea of perverted thoughts floods her mind, causing her to blush and giggle. She stops when she notices someone outside of the village gates staring at her. She seems to be a beautiful, well-endowed woman with dark hair and cold eyes. This woman smiles as she looks at Mei, holding her hand out to the Mizukage.

"Capture her." The woman says, and suddenly a large group of spiders land before the woman. Unfortunately these spiders are as big, if not bigger, than humans. There're even tarantulas as big as the village walls.

"What the?" Says Mei bewildered. The spiders begin to approach her. One leaps down at her, but she jumps back, throwing her senbon stick that held the dango at one of its eyes. Blood squirts out from the eye wound. Mei slides backwards and summons acid off of her body. 'Some people may not realize it, but the Futton element has two possibilities; normally I focus it into an acid that burns a person from the inside, making it like a poison. But I can still do it from the outside.'

"Futton: Atsuki Ryu Hydra!" Mei summons her signature dragonhead move, only this time it being of a clear color, and sends it towards a group of spiders coming towards her. The victims are incinerated and melt into organic goo.

A group of Jonin Kiri ninjas join into the battle, fending off the spider invasion with ninja gear and jutsu. Haku notices the battle going on, having spot an explosion from in the middle of his village, and heads back to the steel mill. This would be a perfect time to test his new weapon.

On his way a giant jumping spider lands before him. 'A summoning?' Haku performs a jutsu and places his hands on the ground, shouting, "Hyoton: Ice Tower!"

Haku sends a set of rising icicles towards the spider, but it leaps over it towards Haku. The ice ninja grabs an ice spike, and stabs at it, preventing the poisonous creature from capturing him. He didn't know if a spider this size could still affect him with its venom, but he wasn't going to take any chances. After pushing the dead arachnid off of him he stands back up and glares ahead, noticing a few spiders going after some civilians.

Before he could make a full dash, something is thrown towards him in the air. He turns around and reaches out for it, catching the Sea Lancer he helped make earlier. He then sees Kenta standing from outside the steel mill with his scythe, nodding at his friend Haku. The ice user nods back, and they run towards the people who need help.

Haku approaches the first spider with his lance, reading over the instructions written on a piece of paper attached to the lance. "'To activate Sea Lancer inject an elemental chakra into the handle portion of the weapon, to create a blade made from the element.' Like I need instructions for that."

With these instructions Haku injects chakra into the weapon, and brings forth a blade made purely of pressurized water. Haku then holds his weapon up with both hands to his right side. With one step forward he swings his weapon horizontally, releasing a wave of pressurized water. The strength of the water cuts through the onslaught of spiders.

Kenta jumps into the fray and stabs on down into the ground. With that the villagers are safe for the moment. Haku then says, "Kenta, go find Orin and the Chunin to protect the civilians. I'll search out the heart of the problem."

Kenta nods and gathers the villagers who can't protect themselves into a safe place. Haku takes off while reading the rest of the instructions. " 'To make a powerful slash that can cut through certain metal input more chakra into a single strike.' Okay, now for the precautions… Done." Haku then releases the instructions and continues running to the front gate, realizing the swarm is centering from there.

"Acid Road." The Mizukage rides upwards through a path of acid, keeping a safe distance from that dangerous spider woman and her spiders. After fighting them for a while she realizes that they are starting to se through her fighting strategy, so she needs to think up a new one. "What are you doing here? Why attack Kiri?"

"I'm looking for a boy named Naruto." She tells her, causing Mei to look at her in shock. Mei lands on top of a building and glares down at her with hatred. "Someone told me I could bring him running to me if I captured the Mizukage… Is that you?"

"Why… Why are you after Naruto?" She questions the spider woman. More acid builds up on her as she looks at her enemy with a hateful glare.

"I don't really care to tell you. You're nothing more than an unwilling pawn in our plan." She tells the Mizukage.

"Hydra!" She sends an acidic dragonhead towards her, but a tarantula jumps in front of the attack and takes the hit. At this point she's totally focused on the spider woman, so she doesn't notice a tiny spider gliding through the air with the use of a web balloon behind her. It lands on her neck and makes a quick bite in her veins, causing Mei to flinch and knock it away. "What…what was that?"

"You may be able to use acid like a poison, but in the end it is still acid. It has no way of destroying the poison in your body." She tells her, watching Mei hold the pulsating voice on her neck. The poison begins to spread even more, and causes Mei to fall to the ground in pain. "Mission accomplished."

A duo of orb spiders large before her, and surround her body with threads. It's enough to completely cover her body below the neck, leaving Mei room to breath. The two spiders then crawl away with her body to the outside of the village, as the beautiful woman follows her.

"Hold up!" A voice shouts out. She turns around and sees someone approaching her. It's Haku with his new weapon, running past a bundle of dead spiders he killed. Haku then holds it up and aims his lance at her, as if it was a sort of crossbow, and shoots an ice spear at her. A wolf spider breaks the ice weapon to pieces, and launches towards Haku at amazing speed.

"V-Slash!" Haku holds his lance with both hands and swings upward diagonally to the left, and then follows up and slashes diagonally upward right. This time he uses the ice element, and cuts off its first two sets of legs, leaving 4 left. As it lands on him Haku knees it in the face off of him, so it won't inject venom into his body.

"Haku! What's the situation?" Choujuro manages to make it to the scene, after braving his way through an onslaught of spiders.

"Choujurou… Someone captured the Mizukage." He tells him, gaining a shocked look from the Seven Swordsman Ninja of the Mist.

"How could anyone capture Mizukage-sama? That's impossible!" He replies. Ignoring his words, Haku summons a block of ice from the ground, and stands on it. Using his control over all ice he slides towards the village exit. "Where are you going?"

"I'm going to go bring her back! Gather the other members of the mist swordsmen and follow after my trail!" Haku says to Choujurou, sliding off with his ice. He would follow after the spider woman and the kidnapped Mizukage, and save her, even if he has to do it himself.

With that, Choujurou heads into the village, to gather his comrades.

"Hang her up there." The spider woman says as an orb spider climbs up a web with the cocoon that is around Mei Terumi. It attaches her to the center of the web, and climbs off as Mei regains consciousness.

'Huh? What…what are you doing?' She says in her mind. She couldn't say this out loud because she seems to be paralyzed.

"You've been bitten by a rare type of spider that can emit a rather unique poison. It is enough to kill certain animals, but when it is used against a human it paralyzes them and leaves them limp for about two days. You'll be hanging around for a while." She says to Mei, knowing exactly what she's thinking. "Now, all I have to do is wait, and Konoha will find out soon enough."

As she contemplates on how to go through with her plan, Haku has managed to reach her hideout. He is busy hiding behind a tree while keeping a safe distance from them. Spiders have a sixth sense when it comes to danger, and getting too close will set it off. If he approaches them they will no doubt trap him in place.

'Where's that backup!' Haku thinks as he checks the scene. Since he can't risk exposing himself, he is using a demon ice mirror to show him what's going on. He then notices that a figure is fading into existence, appearing before the spider woman. 'Who's that?'

"This is quite surprising, Miranda. You actually managed to accomplish this task." The golden figure says, looking at the woman with a pleased look on his face.

"That's allot of praise coming from you, Long-sama, and for such an easy task." She replies, turning around to walk to her catch. "So when will the Jinchuuriki come?"

Long laughs, and states, "These things take time, but be patient. After all, for a fool who always risks his life to save people who are fine by themselves, it shouldn't take long. Although I am a little disappointed in you."

"What?" She quickly turns around and glares at the armored man. "Where is this coming from?"

"I'm only upset that you failed in your mission…you were suppose to make only the Kyubi child come, and no other pest." Long tells her, leaving her even more surprised. Long then points into the direction Haku is hiding.

'How did he know?' Haku dispels the ice mirror and calls out a few senbon.

"I'll leave you to fix this mess. I have other effects to sort out." He says as he walks off, disappearing into the misty greenery. As he leaves, Miranda turns her attention to where he motioned, and summons a tarantula to hunt down whoever's there.

A girl can be seen running across the misty plains of Kiri. She has short, light green hair and tan skin. It looks as if she could be from a foreign place. She also has red-orange eyes and a red scarf wrapped around her back in an X position on her chest. Her outfit is a lighter color, but it resembles the same outfit Ino tends to wear, right down to the fishnet undergarments.

She looks around and sighs, realizing no one is nearby anymore. With this in mind she takes a minute to sit down and rest her body. "I'm finally free from those pursuers. Going on a solo mission is fun and all, but not when I have to deal with those idiots after my head."

Suddenly she hears an explosion close by, deep into the forest. "Ooh, this seems interesting! Better go check it out!"

"Suiton: Bakuha Shoha no Jutsu! ((Water Release: Exploding Water Colliding Wave)" Haku opens his mouth and releases a torrent of water from his mouth. The water splashes around the spiders and traps them underneath, as Haku and the woman jump on top of the water's surface. Mei's body floats to the surface, and luckily her head stays up.

"You…" Miranda glares at Haku with intrigued and disgusted. "What do you think you're doing here?"

"That's my line! What are you doing kidnapping our Mizukage?" Haku yells back at her. The ice ninja walks two steps towards her over water, holding the Sea Lancer in his hand.

"Long wants to lure a certain person here. This woman is necessary because of how important she is to him." Miranda tells the feminine boy.

Haku pauses for a moment, and then says, "Are you talking about Naruto?"

"He didn't say his name, but the person is the last remaining human of a clan of dragon slayers." She replies, confirming Haku of his assumption.

"So you are after him…" Haku holds his lance up and swings horizontally at her, releasing a strong torrent of water. Miranda releases web strings from her fingertips and attaches them to a tree, using it to escape his powers. Haku dashes towards Mei's body, but is ambushed by water stride spiders. "Why are you after Naruto? What has he ever done to you?"

"Your friend was cursed to death the moment he was born into the Uzumaki family. He has to die so Long can continue with his plan." Miranda says as she looks down at him. She then walks down towards Haku in mid air, but the trained ninja could clearly see a thread underneath her feet. "What's the point of protecting someone you know is going to die? Stay out of our way, and your precious Mizukage might be spared."

"Why?" Haku repeats these words in his mind as he glares at the woman. His eyes quickly turn around when one of the water spiders strides over to him. After he does a couple of one handed seals he stomps onto the water, and initiates Sensato Suisho. They pierce into the spiders and go after Miranda, who slaps them away. "I'll tell you why; Naruto stuck his neck out for me, even when I tried to kill him and his friend. He gave me another reason to live, and that's why I'll always be his friend! I won't step aside when someone points a knife at him or his loved ones!"

Miranda smirks a little at the end of his speech, and jumps off the thread. She then lands on the water, and slowly walks towards him. "Even if you die?"

"If I die then that's that." Haku switches to the ice element and thrusts the Sea Lancer at her.

"You'll regret those words kid." She replies, as her slender human legs morph into 6 hairy, black, spider legs. Before Haku could strike her she leaps up in the air and kicks him in the face. Without his feet having contact on the water's surface he ends up plunging underwater.

Underwater Haku glares up at the spider woman. He then looks at his Sea Lancer, and notices that the water around it has become colder. Underwater he has the advantage, because he's safe from her attacks and he's a water expert. He makes a set of hand seals and in his mind says, 'Suiton: Totosamedan no Jutsu! (Surging Shark Missile Technique)'

This attack allows Haku to create a giant shark out of water that can come up from underneath Miranda and devour her. She holds her hand out to the shark, and releases a pulse that destroys it.

'I need to defeat her, especially with this advantage. But I can't just attack her recklessly. She's clearly not normal, even amongst the other spiders.' Haku realizes as he peeks his head up from underneath.

"Pesky little prey!" Miranda releases another pulse down at Haku, this time removing the water around him. Now he's completely exposed. "You shouldn't have ventured into a spider's trap."

"Speaking of spiders," A female voice speaks from above. Suddenly, both of them look up and see a woman with green hair flying down from above with two wings on her back and a tail. "Isn't it the spider that gets washed out?"

She makes a hard impact into the ground, releasing so much water from her crash that a tidal wave is released from all sides. It sweeps away everyone and everything in its path, and a demon can be seen rising up from the depths. The ice ninja takes a look at the person, and notices that she's the same woman from earlier, even though he never saw her before.

The woman glances at Haku and smiles, making the sign for peace with her right hand. "How's it going, Nee-san?"

"Nee-san? I'm a guy!" Haku shouts at her. He still can't believe that so many people can mistake him for a girl still. Maybe he should cut his hair.

"Really? You should cut your hair maybe." She says to him, before pointing at him while laughing. "Anyway, what's up here?"

Haku turns his attention to Miranda's location, where she has Mei. "I thank you for your help just now, but now I have to take this battle seriously. I need to save the Mizukage!"

"Mizukage? You mean that cocoon?" She asks, pointing at the cocoon that is Mei's body in Miranda's grasp.

"Who is this, another pest? But, she reeks of the smell of a beetle." The spider woman says as she glares at her. She then holds up Mei's body, and let's a jumping spider take her away. "And that aura around her…"

"I've got time before I have to return home, so I'll help you out here. My name's Fuu." She says to Haku before summoning more of her red chakra. In the process her body becomes black and two more wings grow. A kabuto horn grows on her head as well.

"What is this…Are you a Jinchuuriki as well?" Haku asks her.

"Eh?" Before Fuu could reply, Miranda releases a shockwave towards them. Fuu uses her wings to fly away, grabbing Haku and flying away in the process. "Are you one too?"

"No, but I have a friend who's the container of the Kyubi. Which one are you?" He asks again, keeping his eyes on the spider woman.

"Me? I don't really think that's important." Fuu states, and then gasps. She looks back and notices that her wings have gotten caught on a spider web. One of the threads seems to connect to Miranda's mouth. "What is this?"

"I knew I smelled that demon scent before; you're the Jinchuuriki of the Shichibi. What brings you to the land of water?" Miranda asks her, glaring up at the insect girl and Haku. As she spoke Haku and Fuu try their best to break free from the webbing.

"I was just finishing a mission and heading home. Now I'm thinking of wrecking you for putting me in such an embarrassing situation!" As she says this, Fuu's tail tears free from the webs and allows her and Haku freedom.

The two ninjas fly down towards her, as Haku fires ice spikes towards her. He then jumps off of Fuu, noticing his clothes are burning from contact. Miranda repels all but one spike, and receives it in her chest. Green blood releases from her wounds as she tries to pull it out. After she does she receives a ram attack from Fuu, plunging into the small sea Haku made. "Damn you… Fine them. I'll deal with you two at the height of my power."

Suddenly the water rises up high, like a submarine coming up from hiding. Both Fuu and Haku gasp in shock when they see that Miranda is now an enormous, even more than the other spiders, black widow spider. Venom drips from her fangs as she glares at Haku and the seven-tailed woman. "Your attacks won't phase me anymore!"

After shouting this, Miranda fires several strands of web at them, but Haku runs away while on water and Fuu flies out of range. The web sticks to a tree and melts a branch off. Haku flinches, thinking, 'We can't let even one of them touch us! I'll have to finish this soon!'

"Hyoton: Rikka no Suisei!(Ice Release: Comet of Ice)" Haku breaths a cold wind at the water, turning it into ice. With this the ice flows towards Miranda as rocks, striking her body and giving off a good freeze to it. But even with this attack she stands back up, like it never even happened.

"You must really want to die so badly." She says while crawling over to him, prepared to sink her fangs into him.

'Time to use my full strength!' Fuu surrounds herself with more of her chakra, until she becomes completely invoked in it. The dark chakra soon releases, and she is shown to now be a large, metallic blue, kabuto beetle with six wings and a lime green tail. "Back off, Kiri ninja!"

Fuu then tackles Miranda and forces her back, using as much of her strength as possible. She hardly succeeds though, with the spider woman being such a strong adversary. 'I guess I'll have to use the Shichibi's Menacing Ball.'

Miranda pushes Fuu back, forcing the Jinchuuriki to fall into the sea. She rises up and tries to fly, but her wings are too wet to accomplish this task. She then opens her mouth and raises her head. Her head begins to shake a bit, like when someone uses mouthwash and gurgles. But instead of spit, she gathers dark energy to her mouth. She then straightens her head and faces the spider, releasing a powerful blast of dark and wind energy at her.

'That technique!' Miranda takes the full force of the blow, resulting in an explosion. Sparks come off of her body and forces her off balance, causing Miranda to sink.

"Haku, now!" Fuu says, hoping to get her hint to the dark haired ninja across. Haku jumps up into the trees, aiming for the spiders guarding Mei.

"V-Slash!" Haku makes a V-Slash move at them, making short work of the spiders easily with his Sea Lancer and its ice element in use. Haku then leaps up another branch and makes several slashes, cutting her free.

Haku then grabs her and slides down to the water, with the use of ice he summons out of nowhere. He then lands on Fuu's back, whose wings are beginning to dry up. "Take us out of here!"

"Don't give me orders!" She shouts at him, taking flight. Regardless of her words she does exactly what he requested.

They don't realize a thread coming at them and attaching to all six of Fuu's wings, immobilizing her once more. She also cries out in pain, seeing as they are of the same acidic design Miranda uses. Fuu is soon pulled down into the sea, as the black widow rises up and wraps around her body.

"This is payback for your attack earlier." Miranda sinks her fangs into Fuu's neck, causing the Jinchuuriki female to scream in pain. She then releases her and plunges them underwater.

"Fuu! Fuu!" Haku shouts, trying to get her conscious again. As she feels the venom seeping through her body, she returns to her normal human state. Haku lifts her and Mei on his shoulders, and stands back up on the water's surface. "Damn…this is the worse situation."

"Too bad for you, ice ninja." Miranda says as she crawls over to him. Suddenly, a large number of kunai and shuriken fall from the skies and strikes her body. Although most of them barely pierce her body, two of them manage to pierce into two of her eyes. She shrieks in pain from feeling such an attack, and scans the area for who could have done that.

"Haku! We're here to help!" Choujurou shouts out to him. By his side are Orin and Kenta, who continue throwing ninja gear at the spider.

Ao comes up from behind Haku, and carries them away to a safer place. "You guys okay?"

"Yeah. Thanks for coming!" Haku replies as they run away from Miranda. With that, Choujurou and the others follow them behind, giving back up to slow down Miranda.

"So how is she?" Haku asks a doctor over Mei's body. Haku is now in a hospital with his teammates Kenta and Orin. Mei is in a hospital bed, and being taken care of at the moment.

"She will be okay. I've given her a vaccine that will help quicken the process this venom is having on her." The doctor tells the ice ninja.

"I see. Thank you for your help." He says, turning around to walk out the door. His two friends follow behind.

"Haku, will you be alright?" Orin asks him, concerned for his well-being.

"That woman… She wasn't after the Mizukage. She wanted Naruto." Haku tells them, bringing a shocked reaction out of the two ninjas. "Someone wants to kill Naruto, just for the fact that he exists. That's cruel."

"Why Naruto? Is it because he's a Jinchuuriki?" Orin asks him. Kenta remains silent and thinks a bit about what could be wrong, mostly because he can't talk.

"I don't know. It may be more than that. Could it have something to do with his parents?" Haku then begins to muse this over, thinking about why they would go through with this in the first place. He then double takes and looks down the hall. "Wait, what room is Fuu in?"

Kenta points down the hall, going three rooms down from the Mizukage's. Haku dashes down the hall to enter her room.

Fuu opens her eyes and looks at the ceiling. Her body feels extremely weak as her consciousness slowly returns to her. That bite from the woman should have killed her, seeing as a Black Widow of that size should be more than capable of slaying a human with a single bite. Thanks to her Biju she could lower to poison's power and survive.

As she begins to see things clearly, she notices someone in front of her. On the other side of her bed is a rather tall person. Her vision is too blurry for her to see this person perfectly, but the figure does have glowing eyes, sort of.

Haku comes before her room and prepares to enter, but is halted when he hears an explosion go off in the village. 'Another attack?'

Haku goes to the window at the end of the hallway, and sees giant spiders around Miranda's size crawling over the city. He prepares to go after them, when he realizes that there are spider webs stringing along the walls before the Mizukage's room. Kenta and Orin have disappeared as well, and the door is open.

"Oh no…" Haku heads into her room, and spot Kenta and Orin battling Miranda. Apparently they're losing. "Stop it!"

Miranda finally acknowledges Haku's arrival, and grins. Her poisonous saliva slips down from her lips as she begins to approach him. She places webbing around his now unconscious friends and hangs them in the air. "I was hoping to find you here, ice ninja. You're a rather interesting person, especially for a man."

"Eh?" Haku backs away from her the moment she said that last sentence. That's the kind of thing he tends to avoid from all but two females. Besides, despite the fact that she's rather attractive, he knows full well that she's a spider, and will do away with him just like a real female spider to a male.

"I'll play with you for a few minutes before I take my target." She says, moving a few steps towards him. "I hope you're ready for this…"

"Sea Lancer!" Haku swings his weapon at her, releasing a stream of water to surround her. He then rushes to Kenta and Orin, grabbing hold of them to take them out of the room. "You guys get some help! I'll handle her myself!"

"But Haku!" Kenta takes Orin out of the room before she could go help him.

"What an annoying power!" Miranda walks on top of the water he sent to her, and leaps at him. She then grabs hold of him and bites down on his neck, injecting her own poison into his veins. Miranda releases him, allowing the ice user to collapse to the ground.

"Damn…it…" Haku speaks as he suffers the poison given to him.

"You were rather interesting… So I'll keep you around for my own pleasure." She whispers in his ears, summoning webs to surround his body. "Now for the-

"Yaton no Jutsu: Ryuuseidan! (Lava Release: Shooting Star/Meteor Bullet" A fireball the size of a meteor flies towards Miranda. She receives the blast, and is blown through a wall. The fire generated also burns off the webbing around Haku.

Miranda begins to pick herself up, rubbing the burned mark around her face. A part of the busted wall breaks open even more as someone walks through it. Miranda takes a glance at the person, and sees that it is Mei Terumi, Mizukage of Kiri. She gives a shocked expression and shouts, "But how? You were supposed to be out for another day!"

"I may not be immune to poison, but I can still remove it slowly. While I was immobilized I channeled my chakra through my body, using my water and fire element to create the boil power. With it I could melt the poison away and extract it through my butt." Mei explains to Miranda. She glances at her legs to see a purple liquid leaking down, and it isn't piss. "If it was a poison that would kill me too soon it would be impossible to do, but thankfully you need me alive."

"Damn you! How many things can go wrong with this plan!" She shouts, sending more spider webs around the room. She then begins to henge into her spider form.

"Yaton no Jutsu: All Directional Ryuusei Dan!" Mei summons the same fiery residue from her body and creates multiple meteors. They each fly off and blast Miranda from all directions. "I usually dislike using this power against my opponent, since it has the strength to destroy all of Kiri and everyone in it… But it looks like I'll need the Lava Release to defeat you."

"You bitch!" Miranda lunges at Mei incredible speed, prepared to take her down once and for all.

"Yaton no Jutsu: Rasen Ryuusei Dan!" Mei forms 7 smaller meteors and has them swirl together, firing them together at Miranda. Her body slowly incinerates from the magma power, causing her to scream and slowly dissolve.

"BE GOOD, MY MASTER!" She screams as she melts away. Mei calls back her lava power and glares at her organic goo.

"Who was her master…" The Mizukage sighs as she leaves the room out the way she came. She then notices Haku still unconscious. "Haku!"

Outside the hospital the arachnid army begins to fall back, running away from the village of Kiri to save their lives. Watching from the distance is a man covered in golden armor. He leaves the village, carrying an unconscious Fu with him.

"Oh well. She did make a distraction on my part. Now there's only two left." – Golden Man

Elsewhere…

In the midst of a battlefield a man stands against a ferocious human-shaped figure with ten tails swinging behind it. The ten-tailed freak has red glowing eyes, like a Jinchuuriki, scaly wings on its back, and has a crocodile-like grin. "Is this the best you can manage with your strength? You were able to topple me before, but now that I'm perfected killing me is impossible."

"Shut up. All you do is talk! As the Hokage of Konoha, I will never forgive you!" The other guy shouts. He is wrapped in a black shirt that holds long sleeves, with shirttails that stretch down like a skirt and a red coloring on the inside, and a black pair of hakama over wooden sandals. In his hands is an odachi made of black steel. The guy himself has his face glared out by the light of the flames around them, but his golden spiky hair with green stripes can be seen.

"Maybe if you had kept your demon powers you wouldn't be this weak. And to think, you and your friends were able to defeat the other 9 Biju." At that, the spiky haired swordsman dashes at his opponent with his sword rearing to go. Darkness gathers around his blade as he prepares to make a strike.

The ten-tailed bastard opens his mouth and fires a blast of wind at the black swordsman, sending him flying. He then laughs confidently while walking away. "I shall now take the lives of all in your precious Konoha."

"…I have…to use that…" The swordsman digs into his pocket and tosses a three-pronged dagger at the back of the man. Once it makes contact, the air around him begins to become distorted and damaged, almost like a rift in time and space.

"What? NO! YOU BASTARD!" He yells while being sucked away into another dimension.

"Good… He's gone for now… I have to follow after him though…" The man mutters, falling asleep at the moment due to tiredness. "Right. After. This. Nap."

* * *

Manabu: That ends this chapter, apparently. Next time, Naruto solves the code to who Pain might be, although we all know who he is, and begins his training with Manabu and the toads at Myoboku-zan.

Julia: Something happens to Manabu too, and will attempt to kill someone he cares for.

Manabu: But first, some weapon information.

The Sea Lancer, Haku's primary weapon created by his friend Kenta. Kenta is an expert blacksmith that is responsible for the majority of the weapons created in Kiri. He designed even Haku's senbon. In wanting to stand up to Sasuke's Decalogue, Haku paid Kenta to create a weapon specifically for him, and the result was the Sea Lancer. While forging it Haku repeated the actions of Kenshin by injecting his own chakra into it, but it didn't create a lance that transforms into different forms; just a lance that made good use of the user's water and ice chakra.

Of course it's just a prototype, and it can only use ice, wind and water chakra since those were entered into it at the time. Eventually Kenta will forge a better version that can utilize all of them, including bloodlines, so it can be used by anyone.

It was inspired by KyuuKyuu Sentai GoGo-V with the V-Lancers. It operates in the same way actually.


	26. Three Ninjas And The Spotted Dragon

Omake-

"So do you guys all have summonings?" Naruto asks his teachers Kurenai, Gai and Asuma.

"Of course we do. Mine are foxes." Kurenai tells Naruto, who cringes a little when he hears that. After all he has dealt with a fox unlike any other.

"I have elk." Asuma says.

"And I have the almighty turtle summoning!" Gai shouts out, standing firm and posing. A cool background appears behind him. When it disappears he performs the summoning technique, causing a poof of smoke to rise.

When the smoke clears, a manhole cover attached to the ground is the only thing that can be seen. Naruto blinks a little as he looks at the manhole opening up. A set of eyes can be seen in the darkness of the manhole. A voice then speaks out, "Hey dude! This is no cartoon!"

The manhole then closes up, and disappears. Naruto tilts his head to the side, saying, "…I think I'm sticking with frogs."

_**Chapter 26: Three Ninjas and The Spotted Dragon**_

"Well?" Shikamaru asks as he looks at Kakashi before him. He hands him a photo taken of Fukasaku's back, showing the numbers Jiraiya wrote before kicking the bucket.

"Hmm… No, I can't think of anything. Why don't you try Hokage-sama, or Naruto?" The silver haired ninja asks the young genius.

"I already checked with the Hokage. All that's left is Naruto." Shikamaru replies, taking back the photo.

"Yeah… All work aside, I really want someone to check up on him." Kakashi tells him. Shikamaru agrees with him; ever since Yusei died, added to the weight of Jiraiya's death, Naruto hasn't spoken to anyone since. He doesn't even go home to his estate anymore, leaving most to wonder where he is.

Fortunately Shikamaru knows where he is. After going through the village Shikamaru comes before what use to be his old apartment. Since it hasn't been bought and used in less that 10 years, it's most likely the only place he could hide in.

He knocks on the door, and after waiting for a few seconds Naruto opens the door. The Chunin backs away when he sees how dirty he looks. "Shikamaru… What do you want?"

"Can I come in?" Shikamaru enters the building and shows him the photo Jiraiya left him. "We couldn't find anything about it. I was hoping you knew about it."

Naruto remains motionless and silent as he looks at it. Shikamaru lifts his right hand up and snaps his fingers at him, hoping to bring the guy out of his stupor. "I'm sorry, what did you say?"

Shikamaru sighs and turns around, walking towards the door. "Alright, let's go."

"Go where?" – Naruto

"Just come on." – Shikamaru

"EH?"

Outside of Konoha Hospital…

Naruto and Shikamaru come before Konoha Hospital. The door opens up, revealing a woman with dark hair coming out. Shikamaru smirks and says, "Ah, there she is."

Naruto blinks in shock and gasps when he sees Kurenai walking out. He's also surprised to see that she's pregnant. "What the? How did she get so fat?"

"She's pregnant, you idiot." Shikamaru tells Naruto, causing him to double take and glare at him. "I thought you'd be smarter after 3 and a half years of training."

"EH? So who's the father, your sensei?" Naruto asks him.

"Huh. Guess you're not so dumb." – Shikamaru

"Shikamaru, I keep telling you not to come visit me." Kurenai says to him.

"No can do! I promised Asuma." Shikamaru replies, causing her to give a little grin.

After the two talked a bit, with Naruto listening from the background, she leaves them alone. The two then walk off. Naruto wants to see his girlfriends and Shikamaru wants to finish what he started. He turns to the blond and says, "That kid will be my student."

Naruto turns to him in shock. "Asuma entrusted that child to me… I also heard about Jiraiya-sama."

"You did?" – Naruto

"Having lost my teacher, I understand your feelings, but sulking and whining is not going to make things work out." Shikamaru tells him. His lecture reaches to Naruto and brings him out of his stupor even further. "We no longer have the luxury or the grief."

"Grief? Where are you getting at?" – Naruto

"Asuma gave me allot of knowledge, both useful and useless. That goes for you too, right? So it's time we step up." – Shikamaru

"Step up? You mean grow up?" – Naruto

"Whatever. Eventually the day will come when you will be training someone, and treat him or her to ramen. After all, we can't be snot-nosed brats forever." Shikamaru finishes, turning his eyes to Naruto.

A sense of feelings boils up in Naruto, making him stand firm and strong. "You're right. I can't be like this forever… I have some work to do!"

"There you go." Shikamaru says with a small smile. He digs in his jacket and pulls out the photo.

Later…

"So, is there anything you can tell us?" Shikamaru asks Naruto, the two of them now in a library. One of the decoders chosen for this task, a shy blond named Shiho, is with them as well.

"If anything comes to mind, please tell us. We're not asking you to immediately answer it." Shiho asks, hoping not to put much pressure onto Naruto.

"…There is something…" – Naruto

"Really? What?" – Shikamaru

Naruto finishes staring at the photo, and turns his attention towards Shikamaru. "Out of all the letters placed on that frog's back, why is it that there is only a single letter?"

"Letter?" – Shiho

"Yeah. There's a katakana letter." Naruto says, pointing at the very first letter. Both Shiho and Shikamaru take a look at it, and have confused looks on their faces.

"Katakana? Isn't that just a number nine?" – Shikamaru

"That's what I thought at first, but I took a closer look at it, and it looks like the katakana letter 'ta'." – Naruto

"It does?" Shikamaru takes a closer look at the 'nine', and his eyebrows lower when he realizes that Naruto is right. "Now that you mention it…"

"Naruto, what makes you think it's 'ta' and not '9'?" – Shiho

"Well, Ero-sennin is an author, right? While we were away on our training trip, he was writing these books. Each time he would have me act as a beta and check his stuff. And each time he used the katakana 'ta', it would resemble a 9." He states, relaying his thoughts to them.

"So it was just lousy handwriting?" Shikamaru questions.

"That's it! The Katakana is a way to tell us what book he wrote, and the rest of the message must be amongst the words in it." Shiho realizes, telling her thoughts to the other two males. "The numbers must have some sort of relation to that book, like page numbers or something."

"What book has Jiraiya written that might relate to 'ta'?" Shikamaru asks his friend Naruto.

"Well, there were about five books he wrote during our travel… There is one that starts with 'ta'." – Naruto

"It's probably this one." Kakashi pops up from behind the window and shows them a book. Naruto and the others glance at it, seeing it said 'Icha Icha Tactics'. It's the same book Naruto gave him when he came back from his trip.

"Tactics! That's it!" – Shikamaru

"I overheard some of your conversation. And after what you said it got stuck in my head, so I went to pick it up." He says, stepping through the window into the room. Good for him they're on the first floor.

"So we just need to check the pages written after ta?" Naruto asks.

Kakashi opens Icha Icha Tactics to the first number on the photo, 38. Of course, since this is an adult novel with lewd words in it, Kakashi is a little embarrassed to say it out loud. He eventually does, for all six pages, the very first line. Soon the first sentence of 31, 8, 106, 7, 207, and 15 are recorded. The first characters of the page are 'The Real One's Not Among Them'.

"Let's give this to Fukasaku-sama. He may know something since he fought Pain with Jiraiya." Kakashi states, holding the paper with the written message. "Tsunade-sama needs to know as well."

"Let's go on!" – Naruto

Meanwhile…

"Well, well, our new member knows a thing or two about capturing people." Madara says as he looks at Long. The light skinned Akatsuki ninja hands the unconscious woman Fuu towards him, dropping her to the ground.

"It was not entertaining at all. She was already unconscious, so capturing her was rather simple." Long replies, a small smirk on his face as he sits down. Beside him in appropriate chairs are Pain and Konan. "I don't stall and make things worse, like you two."

"We had an unexpected visitor. There will be no more interference." Pain replies, glaring at Long with his Rinnegan eyes.

"Quit staring at me with your useless eyes, before I rip them out. I'm sure I can make a glove out of them." At Long's words Pain stands up from his seat and charges at him, slipping a black steel blade from his sleeves. He lunges at Long, who flips backwards out of his seat and blocks the next few blows. He then grabs hold of his fist, and chuckles while looking into his eyes. "Now, now, you may want to control that temper."

"Fool." – Pain

"Don't view Pain-sama as some low weakling." Konan snarls at him.

"For the unstoppable Pain to have had their hands full, and lose one, that must mean he's really something." Madara states, still sitting in his seat. "Jiraiya must have held up his reputation."

"It doesn't matter; in the end we got rid of him. Now we can hunt for the boy." Pain says as he snaps his hand back from Long.

"Because you killed Jiraiya, Konoha is now anxious to deal with you. It's best that you go now before they learn your secret." Long says to Pain, chuckling in between his words.

"It doesn't matter what happens. We will capture the Jinchuuriki, no matter what." Konan's words cause Long to scowl and stick his tongue out at her, bequeathing her wrath even further.

"Either way, there are two Jinchuuriki left. Like I said before, you gather your prey, and Sasuke will gather his." – Madara

"Can you trust that that brat will get the job done?" – Konan

"I can vouch for him." – Madara

Pain then turns to Konan and says, "Get things ready, Konan." From behind him, five more people with the same eyes and robes as Pain exit. "We're heading to Konoha."

Back In Konoha…

"Well, anything?" Naruto asks Fukasaku. He, Shikamaru, Kakashi, Shiho, Sakura, Samui and Tsunade are in her office with the old frog as he reads the message.

"Actually… It's still unclear to me. Like I said before, Pain seems to be able to come back from the dead, so these words are rather open to interpretation. We'll need to study this further." Fukasaku says as he hands the paper back.

"I see. How are the other investigations going?" Kakashi asks Tsunade.

"The autopsy and the interrogation are both taking some time to be finished." Tsunade answers.

"Who knows how long it will take, even with Shizune-sempai helping?" Sakura adds.

"Damn it!" Naruto curses, walking away to exit the room. "I'm going to ask them to rush."

"Naruto, wait! You can't just bother Shizune-sempai!" – Sakura

"I have to avenge Ero-Sennin!" He shouts back, causing her to become silent. It's not as bad as when he yelled at her earlier, but it still hurts to hear him snap at her like that. "I can't just stand around twiddling my thumbs when the world around me is changing!"

Everyone remains silent as he prepares to leave the room. But before he does, Fukasaku speaks up. "Naruto-chan, you have helped in your task of deciphering the code. There's no other reason for you to get involved at the moment."

"EH?" Naruto turns around and glares at the frog.

"Either way, you aren't strong enough to handle Pain. You'll be a fly buzzin' into a hurricane." – Fukasaku

"Then what am I supposed to do! How can I stop Pain?" – Naruto

"Come with me." Fukasaku proclaims, gaining Naruto's full attention. "The same way Jiraiya-chan and Mana-chan have trained at Myoboku-zan, you can grow in the same manner as them."

A bit of sweat falls down from his head as he listens to him, and then asks, "Will I be able to defeat Pain?"

"Most likely, but you won't be able to defeat him with your level at the moment." The old frog answers, and then turns to Tsunade. "Is it alright with you?"

"No problem. It'll help better prepare him for what's up ahead." Tsunade says to him. She knows that Naruto will definitely need this training if he is to fight the higher members of Akatsuki, and even Hao.

"I'm warnin' ya right now, Senjutsu isn't something you can just pick up. None of the training you've gone through as of this moment will be anything like this." Fukasaku tells him, as Naruto gains a confident smirk.

"If Ero-Sennin and Manabu can do it, then it should be no problem for me!" Naruto states proudly.

'Nicely said; maybe he could be the child of prophecy.' – Fukasaku

Later That Afternoon…

"You packed up?" Naruto asks the old man frog, resting his Twilight Star on his right shoulder. He is right by the gates of Konoha with his equipment, a bag of clothes, and his electric outfit on. Behind him are Sakura, Hinata, Samui, Tsunade and Shikamaru, with Fukasaku on top of his carrier frog beside him. "Shikamaru, I'm leaving the code to you."

"No problem." – Shikamaru

"If we get any information we'll send word to you." Tsunade says, leaving his worries gone.

"I'll leave a message frog with ya. If anything pops up, just send him back." Fukasaku adds.

"Good luck Naruto." Sakura says to Naruto, giving a smile to him. Hinata and Samui do the same, but Naruto doesn't seem like he's in the mood to. Even as he turns around he has a frown.

"Thanks. Also, I'm sorry. I'm sorry for yelling at you when you were trying to cheer me up." Naruto says, his eyes facing anything but the three girls in his life.

Sakura steps towards him and gives a quick peck on the lips. "It's okay. You don't have to apologize."

"I don't?" – Naruto

Hinata moves forward and kisses him as well. "I forgive you too. I always will."

"There's no point in saying such a word for something like that." Samui tells him, smiling before and after she leans in and kisses Naruto.

"Thanks. Now, let's go!" Naruto says, turning around to head out. But he quickly stops before making an inch away from Fukasaku. "So, where do we go?"

"It takes a month for anyone to travel there by foot, and even then it takes a secret route that you need to know in order to reach it." Fukasaku tells Naruto.

"EH? Then how did Manabu get to Myoboku-zan!" – Naruto

"Jiraiya-chan must have told Mana-chan the secret route. But for some reason he was able to shorten the time it normally takes and made it successfully to Myoboku-zan." Fukasaku holds out a scroll with the names of certain people on it, including Naruto's "Besides, you don't need to worry, since you Naruto-chan signed a contract with the toads."

"No need to-" Before Naruto could finish; he ends up disappearing into a puff of smoke.

"Naruto!" Hinata yelps.

"Don't worry, it's a reverse summoning. I'll take good care of the kid." Fukasaku then ends up disappearing in the same manner Naruto did.

Meanwhile…

Manabu places a shish kebab over top of a rolling barbeque. Not two seconds later does it incinerate into ashes. He grits his teeth and turns the barbeque off, before he sets the whole mountain on fire. His bad luck with cooking extends to something like this.

The next thing Manabu tries is a flambé banana. But he puts in too much alcohol, and it ends up exploding into flames, in his face. Since he is using Sage Chakra at the moment, he ends up okay, but he has once again failed to make a simple meal.

Finally, Manabu seeks to fix himself something that doesn't involve any sort of heat whatsoever. Thinking this he decides on cereal. Sure it's out of place, due to the time of day, but at least he can't fail at this. Manabu pours a bowl of multi grain Os in a bowl with milk, and prepares to chow down with a spoon, but then the most impossible thing happens; the cereal catches on fire.

"Manabu-san, I know you are terrible at making meals, but even bad cooking shouldn't defy the laws of physics!" Fukasaku's wife says, giving herself a face palm.

Past the point of calm, Manabu throws his ball at a wall, causing it to burst into flames. He then walks outside the building, his stomach growling a bit. 'My cooking skills are terrible, I've been losing my touch in swordsmanship, and I still can't get a perfect form in Senjutsu chakra. I wonder if I'm ever going to be able to help Naruto.'

Manabu continues to wander aimlessly through the forest of the mountain. He comes before a clearing where he can continue training in private. All that frustration in trying to fix something to eat made him too angry deal with his hunger. As long as he's in Sage Mode he doesn't need to worry about his hunger.

Manabu stops in his tracks, and notices something before him. It resembles a black mask. At this point his sage power up wears off and he picks up the item in question. Manabu then brushes the inside off, and places it in his vest. 'This may belong to someone.'

"Wow! So this is Myoboku-zan!" Naruto says as he walks around the forests of the mountain. Beside him are Fukasaku, and Gamakichi who summoned him here.

"Naruto?" Manabu says, getting his former apprentice's attention.

"Manabu!" – Naruto

"What are you doing here?" Manabu asks him, although it should be rather obvious at this point.

"I'm here to train. I want to learn how to use Sage Chakra, just like you and Ero-Sennin!" Naruto says, walking over to him with a confident smirk.

"I see…" – Manabu

Later That Night…

"Man, this is harder than I thought!" Naruto says, rubbing his head and all the wounds on his face and body. "I think I'll die from getting hit so much before I turn into a frog!"

"It's rather strange. When I kept trying to use Sage Chakra, I never was able to go too far for Fukasaku-san to use his stick." Manabu says as he practices training without the oil. He has a sad look on his face. "So, Yusei is gone, right?"

"Yeah. We'll never see him again." Naruto replies, also gaining a sad expression. He then turns to Manabu and asks, "Did you really know him?"

Manabu begins to explain to Naruto, starting with, "Yes. He and I became friends after our bout. After I fought him he wanted me to find his little sister Kushina, and make sure she was still alive in Konoha. After you were born I had to tell him somehow, but I couldn't leave the village and search for him until I knew you were strong enough to live on your own.

"When I met up with him I needed his help to defeat Hao. He somehow lowered casualties, and we were able to escape with our lives. But now Victor and Kazuki can't pursue their ninja careers anymore, Ivir is living with her family on the other continent, and Amelia is in Yuki hiding. I couldn't involve them with my desire to protect you, so Yusei and I went to search for him, and found a man with an orange spiral mask and the Akatsuki robes."

"Spiral mask?" Naruto repeats, thinking back to the time he saw that guy. "I met someone like that. I passed out before I could fight him, but everyone told me he could make any attack pass through him."

"Then it's the same for me. He just kept avoiding us until Yusei's condition kicked in… That's when he struck, and took us out. We were forced to run." Manabu says to the young dragon boy. "I did discover a way to hurt him though."

"You did?" – Naruto

"When he fades away, he has the same characteristics as a spirit. The only weapon in my arsenal capable of damaging a ghost is the Antimatter Sword." He replies, giving Naruto a smile. "But, that's only when he's still present. If he completely goes away we can't harm him."

"So… We can't just attack him…" Naruto surmises as he stands back up. "Then I'll just get stronger! I'll just get him when his get is down, and then POW! Right in the kisser!"

Manabu chuckles a little at his words. Even with Yusei and Jiraiya's deaths on his shoulders he's still this optimistic. And here he is, depressed that he can't cook. This just goes to show that even a teacher can learn from a student. Manabu cannot let his own faults keep him down, or else he really won't be able to move on his own.

It's at that moment where Manabu continues training that the mask illuminates dark smoke.

Elsewhere…

"This is really eating up time." Kisame complains as he, Zetsu and Madara continue to seal away the Biju inside of the Hachibi: Killer Bee.

"Of course it is; there's only us three doing it. Although, even if Pain and Konan were here, we wouldn't be able to do anything." Zetsu remarks.

"Be quiet. Let's just concentrate on the task at-" Before Madara could continue, Killer Bee's body explodes into smoke. In his place is an octopus tentacle. "-Hand…"

"Huh. Looks like he pulled a fast one on us." – Kisame

"Sasuke failed… Which means we're back to 2 now." – Zetsu

Three Days Later…

Naruto and Manabu are both busy collecting nature energy to make Sage Chakra, on top of spiked pillars high up in the sky. Using only a stone plate to keep their balance, they had to stay perfectly still to train, and not die. Fukasaku is sitting before them on a plate of his own, showing them how it's done.

Naruto had a hard time making Sage Chakra, just like Manabu did, so Fukasaku allowed him to use the toad oil. Unlike Manabu however he gathered too much and started to change; luckily Fukasaku smacked him in the head with a special stick to erase the chakra. This continued for the rest of the day, and it took until the next day for Naruto to master using the oil. For the rest of that time he continued to train without the oil, and managed to catch up with Manabu.

Within minutes Naruto opens his eyes as he finishes. This reveals that his eyes have black square pupils with yellow sclera. Around the eyes is a red coloring. Fukasaku smiles, commenting Naruto's appearance by thinking, 'Amazing… He doesn't have the added frog features, only the eyes. That's the sign of a true master.'

Manabu finishes procuring his own chakra and opens his eyes. Unfortunately he still has sharp teeth and a few warts on his right cheek. 'It's still too far for Manabu to master it. He needs a little more training.'

"Naruto-chan, Mana-chan, how ya feelin'?" Fukasaku asks the two boys.

"I feel…better…" Naruto says, smiling as he looks at him.

"I feel like staying like this for a while." Manabu replies.

"Yeah, that happens." – Fukasaku

A bird flies over to Naruto and lands on his right shoulder. Naruto loses his balance and falls off, crashing into the stone spikes below. Manabu looks down and sighs.

"AH! I'M RUINED! I'M CRIPPLED BEYOND REPAIR! I'M… I'M…" Naruto lowers his voice as he picks himself up. He then realizes that his bones aren't broken. Nothing has pierced into his skin. He isn't even drawing blood! "I am okay!"

"That's what happens when you possess Sage Chakra. Your body becomes much stronger than before," Says Manabu to his former apprentice. He then stands up and flips backwards down to where Naruto is. He busts through the spikes without harm as well. "It also exists as a way to summon forth your Metsuryu powers. It will no doubt be stronger than normal chakra."

"Cool! This should give me an advantage against them." – Naruto

"Not yet, Naruto-chan. There's still more to learn, like the final step." Fukasaku says to him before jumping down to where they are.

"Final step? What's that?" – Naruto

"You need to learn Kawazu Kumite, a fighting style that uses all the sage chakra you've built up." Fukasaku explains to him.

"I'll be looking forward to it tomorrow." Naruto smiles as he thinks about how useful it could be.

Soon enough it is nighttime, and Naruto, who was out in the field looking exhaust, can be seen standing before a set of giant stone spikes. A tiny bit of wind swirling around his arm is visible as he mutters, "It's looking good, but I need more practice on that technique. I should have it ready by tomorrow. For now, time for bed."

Soon Naruto begins to head back to Fukasaku's home, tired as a drunk after sex. On his way he spots Manabu in the forest, holding a familiar black mask. Like a ninja, he sneaks up and begins to spy on him. The swordsman then says, "Who does this belong to…"

"Manabu!" Naruto calls out, causing him to quickly hide the black mask. "What's that?"

"It's something someone dropped here. I was going to give it back to them." Manabu replies, hoping he wouldn't get the wrong idea. "You're really keeping good on your training, huh?"

"Yeah. I have to be. Can't fall behind you, right?" Naruto chuckles proudly while crossing his arms.

"There are a lot of enemies after you, humans and demons alike. Being a dragon slayer gives you so many responsibilities." Manabu adds.

"Manabu," Naruto walks closer to his mentor and asks, "Why are people after me? I haven't done anything wrong, and yet…"

Manabu sighs a little, saying, "Like I've said before, you have parents who both have long histories. Your mother was a descendant of humans who specialized in slaying dragons, and your father is the Yellow Flash of Konoha. Those alone should put your life in danger, but you're also a Jinchuuriki. Despite all of that, you continue to live."

"Of course I will! It would be a disgrace to everyone who gave their lives for me and my friends. I can't give up, no matter what…" Naruto states, gripping his fist tightly. 'But that still doesn't explain why that wolf guy was after me…"

"So, how's the new technique?" – Manabu

"Eh? You know about that?" – Naruto

"It's okay. I hope you're doing well on your sword training as well as your techniques." Manabu says to him. Naruto looks away with a little bit of anxiety, something he recognizes. Immediately he asks, "Did you use the Soul Sword?"

Naruto shoots his eyes at Manabu, and says, "I worked my butt off training to get all 10 forms of the Twilight Star. But why couldn't I use it? I had to rely on that sword to fight Sasuke, and now he's probably even more messed up."

"There are already ten swords in that weapon's arsenal. You'll never be able to gain the final blade with that one." Manabu's words strike Naruto and cause him to glare at him in shock. "Like I told you before, you will know of the sword's abilities when you receive it, but you can never receive this sword until you can clear the uncertainty and darkness in your heart."

"How the hell am I supposed to do that?" – Naruto

"I don't know. Somehow, someway…" Manabu's ears pick up a weird noise close by. "Did you hear that?"

"Hear what?" The noise goes off again, and this time the blond hears it. "Oh that noise! Let's go check it out!"

Manabu picks up his sword and leads Naruto to where the source of the noise is. There he spots two people fighting, and losing, against this one guy. Two of them are recognized as the two battling each other before in the last chapter, but one looks a bit different. He resembles the blond haired ninja in dark clothes, but his hair is white like snow and he has a white skin tone on his body. His eyes have a cerulean blue color to it with a gray pupil, and the ring around his iris has diamonds in it.

"Who are they?" Naruto asks.

"I don't know… But two of them look like you." Manabu says, noticing the two blonds resemble Naruto allot.

"Eh? Really?" – Naruto

"I'm amazed two of you existed in different dimensions. As annoying as two Narutos are, I'll really enjoy killing you twice." The ten-tailed monster says to the two Narutos.

"Getsuga Tenshou!" The Naruto in the black clothes swings his black sword down at him, releasing a shockwave of black energy.

"Create a path, Pika Rasengan!" The other Naruto summons a Rasengan, and has it fire a beam of light at their opponent. Both attacks cause an explosion that blasts him back. "Now, destroy Madara and everything in your path, Yami Ryusen!"

He punches his left fist at Madara, summoning a phantomlike giant fist that smashes him into the ground. The ten tailed monster stands back up, flapping his tails about angrily. A metal contraption appears in his right hand, and wind blows out from the tip to form a blade. "It's useless to stop me. I've defeated you before, I'll do it again."

"What makes you think I can't win?" – Black Naruto

"Because, our first match ended in a draw. I defeated you in our second match, and you had to send me away for the third. You can't beat me!" Madara then swings his weapon at them, releasing a hurricane that blows them away.

"Seeker Missile!" The whiter Naruto holds his right hand out to fire a set of missiles made of light at the monster.

"It's useless!" Madara opens his mouth and fires a powerful stream of energy that blows the two ninjas away. They each land face forward on the ground. "Die, along with all the hopes and dreams of your world!"

He releases a stronger hurricane at them, one they would be unable to counter. Suddenly, someone stands before it and opens their mouth, sucking in the wind and all its power. Madara stares at the incident with shock. "WHAT?"

"Tenryu no Hoko!" Naruto opens his mouth and fires his own hurricane at Madara, blowing him away. While airborne, Manabu manages to use Kuro Getsuga to reach him and strikes using Gilgamesh.

Dragon Slayer Naruto turns around to see his other two replicas. "So, can I ask who you guys are?"

"Are you the Naruto of this alternate dimension?" The blacker Naruto asks the younger him.

"Alternate dimension? You mean, you guys are me from another universe, Kuro-san?" – DS Naruto

That Naruto stands up and brushes himself off. "My name is Naruto Kazama, the 6th Hokage of Konoha. That guy over there is the Madara of my dimension. He's a pain in the ass human/Jinchuuriki of the Juubi that has the power to control wind, water, earth and lightning. I accidentally used an experimental jutsu to reduce him to particles, but he went to another universe instead."

The whiter Naruto leans back and stretches a bit. "My name is Kaimuto Namikaze. I'm the fusion of a deity that rules nothingness and Naruto Namikaze. While I was sleeping for the rest of my life, I discovered this guy acting up in Konoha. So I followed him and found against the guy, but he was too strong. Even this guy and me couldn't handle him, and for some reason he managed to copy those dimension skipping powers. We had to follow him here and make sure he wouldn't cause anymore trouble."

"Wow! So I get to become Hokage too?" – DS Naruto

"Maybe, but I had to give up my dream to become Hokage the moment I had dealt with that one guy." – Shiro Naruto

"Wow… So what is it like being in your worlds? Are Sakura, Hinata, Mei, and Samui there with you two?" – DS Naruto

"I got married to Tenten and Ayame." – Black

"That's a secret." – White

"Hey! Are you three going to just ignore me!" Madara shouts as he stands back up. Manabu faces off before him while holding Starlight Rave.

"Who are you?" – Manabu

"My name is Juubi no Waniryu and Uchiha Madara. I've been hopping from alternate dimensions in search of one of my other selves. Just think of all the damage we could wreak upon all dimensions, with my new powers!" Madara's words cause the two denizens of this dimension to flare hateful eyes at him. "Ever since that moon fox screwed up and sent me to a special dimension, I found a power no one can match!"

'Wait… That name sounds rather familiar.' – Naruto Uzumaki

"I made a mistake, but it won't happen again," Black rushes past the others to attack Madara. A red Rasengan forms in his free hand, taking the form of copter blades. "Katon: Rasen Gyro!"

He throws it at Madara, having it turn sideways to rip him in half. A third eye appears on Madara's head as he glances at the attack. The gyro disappears, vanishing to another dimension. "I'll show you the power I've gained!"

He fires a red ray of light from his mouth. Manabu manages to duck underneath and avoid it, but the others get caught. The three Narutos vanish into thin air, leaving Manabu alone to face him. Madara glares at the swordsman, his three eyes looking deep into his two. "You don't have any chakra emitting from you. Are you one of those samurai?"

"That's none of your business!" Manabu dashes towards Madara, swinging Gilgamesh down at him. Madara blocks with his right hand, and causes the explosion to vanish. "What?"

"Pathetic!" Madara repels Manabu away into the air. He then uses his weapon to summon lightning and strike the swordsman. "A human who can't use chakra has no chance against me."

Manabu crashes to the ground, trying his best to stand up again. "Who do you think I am? I don't give up so easily!"

"Then die easily!" Madara sends another lightning bolt from his blade towards Manabu.

He cuts it away using his Phantom Sword Tenchi. He then holds it up to his left side, and after changing it to the Gravity Sword Kuro Getsuga he dashes towards Madara. The ten tailed monster blocks using his weapon, but Manabu then releases a wave of condensed gravity to blow him away.

"Why you!" Madara disappears into nothingness, and reappears behind Manabu.

"Damn!" The enemy stabs his lightning blade through his back, piercing into his stomach. He pulls back, and pushes Manabu to the ground. The black mask falls from his clothes.

'Damn… I couldn't predict that…' – Manabu

"You are just a weakling human. You don't stand a chance," Madara then walks off, leaving Manabu there to die. "Now, I wonder where I can find my other self…"

'I have to bring them back. I promised I'd look after Naruto…' Manabu tries to pick himself up to face Madara once more. 'I didn't think Madara would be so powerful; I won't be able to stand still in this state… I need power.'

Dark energy begins to release from the black mask, resonating with Manabu's thoughts. It then envelops him and flies up to his face. "What the? Hey, let go of me!"

The mask attaches to Manabu's face, causing him to muffle and moan. Madara begins to sense the dark energy, and turns his attention back to Manabu, who is beginning to change. His clothes change into black leather and he grows a single horn on top of his head. The mask merges with his skin, and his eyes become golden and wolf-like. Rouki has returned.

"And just who are you?" Madara questions the black wolf, aiming his weapon at him.

"Rouki," He glares at Madara with his glowing golden eyes.

"Never heard of ya," The ten-tailed monster dashes towards Rouki and stabs his lightning blade at him.

The black wolf grabs Manabu's Starlight Rave, and upon touch it transforms itself into a crescent blade-like weapon. "Moonlight Rave!"

"What is this? Aren't you that human from before?" The dark energy emitting from his weapon blows Madara back. "You're no ordinary human I see."

"It's a full moon tonight." Rouki says as he continues to move towards Madara. The light of the full moon above them shines down, giving the same glow as Rouki's eyes. "Antimatter Sonic!"

Rouki swings his weapon at Madara, releasing a wave of dark energy. It strikes him and causes great pain to the man. "What… What is this pain?"

A ray of light flashes out from his chest, and out pops the three Narutos. White is the first to get back up, saying, "What happened?"

"We were trapped in that weird dimension for some reason." Black states, using his sword as a balance.

"Sakasa Ace releases a poison that can harm people like you, a ghostly apparition that can never belong to a world of matter." Rouki tells Madara, his black sword held up for the monster's neck. "You are not a worthy opponent for me."

"What's that? I dare you to say that again!" Madara charges at Rouki, but is attacked by his sword. The impact causes an explosion, one that is similar to Gilgamesh.

"Where's Manabu?" DS asks, looking around for his former mentor. His nose picks up a familiar smell coming off of Rouki, and that's when he remembers who the guy is. "Hey! You're that guy who killed Mizuki!"

"Oh, it's you. I was hoping to find you soon." Rouki says when he notices Naruto.

"Where's Manabu?" – Naruto

"If you're talking about that guy with spiky hair, he is my new vessel." DS glares at Rouki with a shocked expression on his face.

"What?" – DS Naruto

"I took control of his body because he held my mask during this full moon night. Because of him I can now live again!" Rouki swings his weapon at the Narutos and releases a wave of energy, but misses intentionally so he would scare them back.

"Not yet… I will crush you, you stupid wolf!" Says Madara as he tries to stand himself up. Madara releases a powerful wind torrent towards Rouki, which catches him off guard and blows him back. He then charges towards him, summoning lightning to strike Rouki.

"Did you forget about us?" The three Narutos leap from where they stood towards Madara, and kick him in the face. He slides across the ground from that attack.

"It seems I'll have to postpone our fight until later, Naruto Uzumaki. If you want him back you'll have to defeat me in battle." Rouki tells Naruto as he disappears

"Hey, stop!" DS shouts, but he disappears. Naruto then turns his attention to Madara, growling, "You! Even if you're from another world you're a pain in the ass!"

White makes a set of hand seals, saying, "Let's take this to a more appropriate location," Naruto Kazama, Naruto Namikaze, and Naruto Uzumaki all disappear along with Madara, appearing in an in-between dimension. "This way we can take him out without having to worry about him running away."

"Damn you! Even if I have to travel across dimensions and wipe you away from all of them, I will make sure I never see your face ever again!" Madara roars as he transforms. He now resembles a deformed human sized alligator – dragon combination complete with wings, scales, and ten swishing tails. "Now, let's end this ever long epilogue, Naruto Kazama."

"I finished off the rest of Espada, along with Pein and Orochimaru! It's time you joined your friends." Black holds his free hand up, and a yellow Rasengan forms into a spear. He then throws it, yelling, "Raiton: Rasen Yari!"

The spiraling spear flies through the air towards the gator dragon, but it stomps down on the attack like it was an ant. Madara then says, "If you think a couple of foxes can stand up to a sly alligator, then you might as well rip your guts out. It's as foolish as sending ants to slay dragons."

A stream of powerful energy flies from his mouth, blasting Black and DS. White manages to fade out and avoid it. He then summons swords of light to pierce and encase Madara by the waist. "Kazama, strike him now with Rasenhou!"

"Right," Black aims his right hand at Madara in the shape of a gun, and wind begins to gather at the tip. While this goes on Dragon Slayer Naruto sits down in his meditation pose.

"How stupid do you think I am?" Lightning comes down from above and strikes Black, White and DS. "I know every trick you two know! You have no hope of stopping me!

"DIE!" Madara fires a stream of condensed electricity and wind towards the three Narutos.

"I got it!" DS stands up to his feet and rushes towards the attack. He grabs hold of it and begins to devour both elements.

"HE ATE IT!" – Madara

"EH?" – Black/White

DS begins to absorb the elements fired at him, until there is nothing left. He then glares up at the dragon, his eyes showing he is now in Sage mode. "Too bad for you, but I specialize in fighting dragons."

"Impossible!" Madara growls in anger as he releases more of his energy. His weapon attaches to his right arm like it was a part of it.

"Senjutsu," DS makes a Shadow Clone and they create a Rasengan. The original then allows the clone to run towards Madara with the spiraling sphere, which grows larger in size. "Oodama Rasengan!"

Madara summons a wall of muddy water to take some of the power, and gets caught in the attack. That clone then disappears, leaving only the original Naruto to fly above him using his saucer. "Who do you think you are, getting in my way like that?"

"Senjutsu," Naruto jumps off and soars down towards the gator dragon. The sphere expands and becomes bigger than even the last one. He falls down and slams the attack down on Madara with both hands. "Chou Oodama Rasengan!"

(Sage Technique: Super Great Ball Spiraling Sphere)

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Kenshin: And with that, we end this chapter.

Julia: Who the hell were they?

Kenshin: Oh them? The white Naruto came from Echo of Spiraling Heart and the black Naruto is from Angel Eyes For A Demon Guy. They both teamed up to chase after Madara Uchiha from Angel Eyes, but that is another story.

Yusei: So what happens next time?

Julia: Naruto, Naruto, and Naruto defeat Madara and kill him once and for all, leaving the intruders to return to their dimensions. Naruto then continues his training, not only to bring back Manabu but to stop Akatsuki and Pain. Then comes the invasion of pain.

Manabu: Oh yeah, for the edited version of this chapter, we have a special surprise, information about the 9th Sword. It is said to be the strongest form of the Twilight Star, one that surpasses the first 8 in pure power. It is Edge Daemon.

9th Sword: The Soul Sword Edge Daemon

Weapon: Broadsword

Description: It is a dangerously sharp broad sword with a red and green blade mixed together in a sick blood/ooze combination. The guard has feather-like spikes sticking out and the bottom of the guard looks like fangs reared up into a crown shape. One side of the guard has a lion eye while the other is a falcon eye.

Abilities: The sword releases an invisible gold/silver aura that shuts out the user's emotions. It draws out the person's darker emotions and leads them into a berserk stage. This aura also increases the user's physical capabilities and removes any limitations the other swords may be holding against him.

Weakness: The sword also contains the souls of the two demons used to make it, and they will use this weapon to take control over the owner's body. With the sword eliminating the user's sense of reason they won't be able to fight back. And even if the user manages to break free of the sword, it will continue to seduce the user back into trying it again. But it is said that resisting its temptation will bring forth a brand new power.


	27. The Trilogy of Justice Part 1

_**Naruto and The Water Princess**_

Disclaimer: Check back last chapter.

Naruto & Sasuke: Super Hero Time!

Naruto: Two other versions of me show up when a villain invades Myoboku-zan. What's that about?

Sasuke: The attack on Konoha begins, and a black wolf shows up.

Kenshin: Here we go!

Omake-

18-year-old Naruto Uzumaki rushes to the pharmacy in hopes to procure a prescription he made a while ago. It would really help with his sleepless nights. After all the things he has done on missions he needs a way to stay asleep, without being awoke hour after hour from stupid nightmares. Naruto enters the store quickly, and finds two people already in front of him.

One of them picks up their prescription and leaves, while the other is Hiashi Hyuga. Naruto knows him well as Hinata's father, the woman he has been dating for the past few days. Just by the glare he receives from the man, and his cold white eyes, he could tell this is going to be rather awkward.

"Good afternoon, Hiashi-san." Naruto says, putting a little too much emphasis on 'san'. He really doesn't like to address people so formally, but he knows that is one way to piss him off, which would endanger his relationship with Hinata. Although, now that he thinks about it, he only asked her out on a whim.

"Good afternoon, Naruto-kun. What brings you here?" Hiashi asks him, before turning around to the counter guy. He then hands him a prescription slip. "I'd like to receive that prescription my daughter ordered."

"Coming right up, sir." He says, walking off with the slip of paper. Hiashi then turns his attention to Naruto.

"Naruto-kun, what brings you here? I wouldn't expect anyone like you to need prescription drugs." – Hiashi

"I've been having sleepless nights lately. What about you?" – Naruto

"It's something Hinata ordered for. I'm only picking it up for her while she's off today." Hiashi explains to him. He then gives a stern, piercing cold glare at Naruto. "Speaking of which, Hinata speaks highly about you. You haven't done anything I wouldn't approve of to her, have you?"

"I've treated her with nothing but the utmost care, whatever that means. The last thing I would do is violating her person or privacy." Naruto replies, a little sweat coming down his face. It's not that he's lying, which he is not; it's just that the glare is so strong he could probably faint.

"I see… That's good." He says, and turns around when the counter person comes back with Hinata's prescribed bag.

"Here are your daughter's birth control pills." The man says as he hands him the bag.

Hiashi's eyes light up in shock, and Naruto, having heard what he said, loses all color in his body. The adult then turns around to face Naruto, flaring his Byakugan in rage. Naruto takes this as a hint to bolt, running out the door at blinding speed. 'I had no idea about that!'

What neither of them knew was that Hinata wasn't planning on getting any birth control pills. She was hoping to save her virginity for Naruto when they're married, so she would have no guilt in wearing a white dress. In actuality she got them for Hanabi, who wanted to take things to the next level with Konohamaru.

_**

* * *

**_

Chapter 27: The Trilogy of True Justice Part 1 – The Invasion of Pain

"Chou Oodama Rasengan!" Naruto's attack slams down onto Madara's body, crushing him underneath its wind scraping weight. Dust gathers up from the power it dispels, and Naruto falls backwards from the impact site. He now stands while clutching the Twilight Star in both hands. 'That used up a bit of my Sage Chakra. I can still use Rasen Shuriken, but I have to make it count.'

Madara rises up from the crater he fell in, and glares up at the dragon slayer. His entire body shows wounds and scars. He grumbles, "How did you survive the lightning and wind?"

"I hold a bloodline that gives me immunity to lightning and wind. It also makes me a perfect candidate for cutting down things like you!" He says to him, shape shifting his sword into Chromedread.

"That won't be enough to defeat me!" Madara stomps on the ground, summoning the ground to surround DS' body.

Electricity releases from his body to repel the earth element, but he wasn't able to avoid the water encasing him in a prison. Madara then laughs, "Your wind won't come out of water, and using electricity will short circuit you out."

"Black Mu!" White swipes his left arm at the water and frees DS, leaving him to lie on his knees coughing and gasping for air.

"Getsuga Tenshou!" A stream of darkness flies towards Madara, razing him through the ground. Black then moves over to DS. "You said you could resist his lightning and wind attacks, right?"

"Yeah. I have a bloodline that has prepared me for slaying dragons," Coughs out the ninja.

"Good. We'll open a path for you and then you go in for the kill." White says as he pounds his fists together.

"I'll do the same." – Black

"Thanks. I'll pour all my energy into this attack." Naruto says as he gets into a meditation stance. "Just make sure he doesn't make me move. I need to stay perfectly still for this."

"Oo!" Black and White shouts, dashing towards Madara.

"This soul power I've obtained will keep me stronger than you fools!" Madara yells as he sends a flood of electrified water towards them.

"I got it! Ether no Hado!" White releases a wave of ethereal energy to repel the attack, making sure not a single drop reached the dragon slayer.

"Hurry up kid!" Black engages Madara in a sword fight, having his monster of an opponent fight using its hard scales. White supports by firing energy attacks from a distance, but it has a bit of trouble piercing that hide.

DS continues to gather natural energy and balance it out with his other two. Eventually he does and recharges his Sage Chakra supply, becoming Sage mode Naruto once again. He stands up and sees both White and Black have been blown back by Madara's power, but this has left an opening.

"NOW!" – White/Black

DS charges at Madara, forming a Rasengan in his right hand. He jumps over top of Black, who uses the dull part of his sword to pull him towards Madara as full speed. During this mid air leap he spins in accordance to the Rasengan, increasing the wind power and speed, and slams into Madara's chest. "Senjutsu: Tenryu no Screw Drill Rasengan!"

The attack busts a hole in his scaly skin, leaving nothing but flesh in the way. Madara falls back and collapses to his knees. "But why? I am the Juubi no Waniryu, the most powerful of all Biju!"

"So? Getsuga Tenshou!" Black releases a stream of dark energy at the wounded area, causing him to cough blood.

"Wakusei Kyaku! (Planet Kick)" White performs a 180 Degree spin in the air and roundhouse kicks Madara in his wounded area. After the impact strikes, his body releases numerous sparks. But then he suffers several small explosions on his body.

"You damned fools… I'll make you all pay!" Madara growls, charging at DS in blind fury.

"I really dislike people dying and murder and all that, but you're really asking for it!" Electricity gathers around Naruto's right fist, forming Kaminari Punch. As Madara gets closer, another explosion goes off on a part of his body, just as he reaches out for Naruto.

DS then takes a single step forward and throws a punch at Madara. His punch crosses with his left fist and busts through it, before landing directly on the fleshy wound. Even more sparks explode from his body, bringing Madara down to his feet. "Damn you!"

"I got this." Black walks towards Madara, gripping his black steel blade. He approaches Madara as more explosions fly from his body. "I'll finish you off once and for all."

"NO! This can't be! After being revived by Pain-sama, after absorbing the remaining energy of my brothers, and after eating that red soul sword, I refuse to die here! I REFUSE TO BELIEVE IT!" – Madara

In order to shut him up, Black lops his head clean off. White stares emotionlessly, while DS turns away mortified. With his death his body begins to turn to dust. The three of them all breathe a sigh of relief, leaving White to bring them back to DS' world, at the mountain.

"There. It's finally over." Black says, sheathing his weapon away. He turns to White and asks, "You think you can give me a ride home?"

"Sure," Says White, as he uses his powers to open up a portal. "Thanks for the help kid. We couldn't have done it without you."

"No problem. I've always wanted to see how cool I was," Exclaims DS as he looks at them. "You guys didn't have to deal with that whole Kyubi thing right?"

"Yup." At this DS sighs depressed.

"I should have seen that coming. But you guys are happy now, right?" He asks them.

"I'm not happy." – White

"Let's get going. Tenten and Ayame promised me a foot rub." Black says, preparing to walk through the portal.

"Yeah. Good luck with your problem Naruto. Your Madara is just as bothersome, I can assume. Unfortunately, we can't help you against him." – White

"Ya damn right he is! I'll stop him with my own power." DS smiles as he looks at him, who returns it full force.

"Good luck, me." Black says to Naruto, walking through the portal first.

"You're going to need it, especially if you hate death." As White leaves, he whispers the last part before he enters the portal.

The portal closes up behind Naruto 1 and 2, leaving DS alone to face the fact that Manabu is gone. Now that he's Rouki he may have to fight him. Things have already gone bad for him; he doesn't know if his universe has a Madara in it, but from what he has heard from the Kyubi and these guys he's around, and may be even stronger, and now that Manabu's gone he has lost the secret to unlocking the final sword.

"I'll have to find out by myself. If not, then I still have Senjutsu." Naruto says in his mind as he continues towards his stay. No doubt someone would notice Manabu's disappearance.

As he does leave Rouki walks through a forest leading back to civilization. Along the way he spots someone in his path, a person cloaked in robes. "Rouki."

"You… Gomajuu Skelgar tribe… What are you doing here?" – Rouki

"I dropped your mask here in hopes for that swordsman to pick it up. I was hoping the boy would wear it, but this works as well. Go kill him now." The cloaked person orders Rouki.

"Don't tell me what to do. If I want to kill him, I'll do it when he's good and ready. There's no point in having a match with someone when they're not at full strength." Says Rouki to the mysterious person. "Besides, why don't you do it?"

"My powers are useless at night. It takes sunlight for one such as me to fight him." – Man

"Regardless, we don't need to worry too much about him. Either he dies by my sword, or he dies by Akatsuki." Rouki lifts his weapon up, allowing the light of the full moon to gleam off of it. "If he let's himself die by their hands then he wouldn't have been much of a challenge in the first place."

"Nobody gives a fuck about your stupid pride, wolf! What matters is being strong! So strong you won't need a thing such as pride!" – Man

"Very soon, people will care, Hakurei Tenpi. No one will ever look down on me once I destroy the last of the Uzumaki fairly." – Rouki

Konoha Tomorrow At 11…

Inside of Konoha the groups of ninjas warned about Pain's arrival are busy making their preparations for his inevitable return. Knowing they could never give up on Naruto they decide instead to fight back and take him out, without having to rely on and risk Naruto's life. A few of them, Hanabi Hyuga, Hiashi Hyuga, and Team Gai are out on missions. For the moment, things are quiet: the calm before the storm.

Spoke too soon; a group of five guys and two girls in Akatsuki robes now stand by the border of Konoha, ready to make their grand entrance. They are none other than the group of heroes that single-handedly defeated the Grand Witch Grandiene… Oh wait, wrong script. These guys are the bastards that killed Naruto's apprentice Jiraiya and made him take the Senjutsu training in the first place, and Konan.

Although, only five of the Pain ninjas are from that time, since Jiraiya killed and brought back one of them for autopsy through Fukasaku. That Pain has been replaced with a light haired girl. Still, she has the same piercing, orange hair, Rinnegan, and cloak the others have.

The main Pain steps forward while glancing his eyes ahead of him. "There is a spherical barrier protecting Konoha from all sides. Anyone who enters will be immediately detected."

"But Kisame and Itachi got in without any trouble." Konan states, bringing up a very important fact.

"Itachi was part of the assassination squad. There's no way he wouldn't have a secret way in. I have a much different plan." – Tallest Pain

"Alright, let's go through the plan one last time, to make sure no one gets confused." The main one turns to Konan as he says this, who pouts angrily at him. He then turns around and says, "We'll each split up into two separate teams; diversion and intelligence gathering. The task of distracting Konoha troops belong to Shurado the Asura Realm," The Pain with the freakishly long neck and spikes on top of his head positions himself like a marine, "Chikushoudo, the Animal Realm," This time the girl Pain stands up straight, "and Gakido, the Preta Realm." The Pain with spikes coming out his cheeks and curled back hair erects himself.

"Reconnaissance belongs to Ningendo, the Human Realm," He mentions the one with long hair, "Jigokudo, the Naraku Realm," This Pain is the buff looking one, "And Tendo, the God Realm. Asura Realm will toss Animal Realm up to the top of the barrier where she will land in the middle of the village. They'll then miscalculate and believe there is only one of us; all that's left is to wait for her summoning."

"Then let's get this over with." Asura grabs Animal from behind and throws her high up into the air. While midair she performs a hand seal, and passes through the barrier.

A sensor detects the invader and warns the others of their locations.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu," Says the Animal Realm in an eerie and creepy male voice; it sounded just like the others. Her action also summons the other Pains, and Konan.

"Scatter," Says the God Realm, and soon they all quickly spread out.

Nobody notices a thing, until Asura Realm pulls his arm off, and fires missiles up into the air, which eventually falls back down to earth and explodes in random parts of the village. Animal Realm summons a giant centipede and has it attack a building, causing more confusion in the chaos. Preta Realm stands up top a group of boulders created by their destruction, drawing attention to him.

Meanwhile, the other Pains and Konan hide in the shadows and search out those who may know Naruto's whereabouts.

Elsewhere…

Naruto's training with Kawaru Kumite is just about finished, and with terrific results.

Kirigakure…

"This seems serious." Mei says as she takes a look at a letter handed to her. It comes from the Raikage, and it states that they are to come back together for a meeting, all five of the shadows that rule the main ninja villages. "I'm still a little fuzzy from the poison, but I think I can go."

She then stands up and leaves her office, ignoring the slips she would have to attend to when she gets back. Hopefully she can spend a little more time with her fiancé Naruto.

Back To Action…

"Are you okay?" Iruka heads over to a fallen ninja caught in the explosion. Unknown to him, God Realm Pain appears behind him. Iruka quickly turns around in time to spot his presence.

"Where is the Kyubi's Jinchuuriki? Tell me now, or die." He says calmly to the man.

'So that's what's going on…Akatsuki…' "I won't tell you a damn thing." He says in a strong, calm manner.

"I see." God Realm rears his fist back and draws a black weapon, before jabbing forward to kill Iruka.

Luckily, Kakashi manages to grab his wrist to stop him. His normal and Sharingan eye glare into the God Realm's. "So, the lesser ones make a distraction while the rest sneak around without being noticed."

"Kakashi!" – Iruka

"Take him out of here and get to a safe place." – Kakashi

Iruka lifts the injured ninja up over his shoulder, and dashes off with him, leaving the silver haired ninja to battle the orange haired enemy. 'Good luck.'

Once he leaves, things kick off; Pain kicks Kakashi in the knees and prepares to kick him in the face. He ducks and uses a jutsu, "Doton: Doryuheki," to summon a wall with dog heads on it behind Pain.

Pain jabs his metal blade into Kakashi's shoulder, but the Konoha ninja managed to grab hold of him and push him back into a wall. He then activates Raikiri on his right hand and stabs at his face. But just as quickly, he moves his head and avoids it. 'What?'

"Kakashi Hatake, the Copy Ninja, it's nice to see you. Where's the Kyubi?" The God Realm watches as Kakashi steps back away from him.

"That's a stupid question," Replies Kakashi as he lunges forward at him. But an invisible force, one that also destroys his wall, suddenly repels him.

Meanwhile…

"Good job Naruto! You've mastered Sage Chakra and the fighting style. Now I only need to say one thing, something you're going to need when you get into a battle." – Fukasaku

"Eh?" Naruto replies, looking at the old frog across the table. They are inside now eating the food, that is at least edible thanks to Manabu's disappearance, and resting from training. "You sound serious."

"The thing is, using Sage Mode is risky," As he says this Naruto's eyes squint in shock, "Sure it has great benefits, especially for you, but you can't stay in Sage Mode for extended periods of time, which I'm sure you know. But that's just one of the two problems; the other is in order for any sage to gather Sage Chakra you must be completely still. That presents a problem when you're mid battle and need to recharge; if you don't stop moving, you'll never gather Sage Chakra, and if you do stop moving, you'll be a sitting duck."

"What? Well then what was the point of learning it in the first place! Staying still was hard for me even during training! Are you saying I need to rely on others just to recharge my batteries?" – Naruto

"Exactly, but there is another way." This mention lights Naruto's eyes up, and brings down a shining ray of hope. "If we can fuse our bodies then you'll be fine."

An image flashes through Naruto's mind as he thinks about it, and gasps in fear when he realizes he'll turn into a frog boy monster. "I meant stand on your shoulder. That way I can produce the Sage Chakra for you while you move."

"Oh I see." He calms down when he realizes his mistake.

"Jiraiya-chan does this as well; whenever he's in Sage Mode he has us replenish his supply whenever he runs out." At his words Naruto smiles a bit. If this works then he won't have to worry about running out of Sage Chakra at the last minute. "Let's both do our best."

"Yeah." – Naruto

Later…

"What just happened?" Naruto questions, trying to figure out what just happened. Naruto and Fukasaku are outside trying to fuse together and practice their techniques, but something stopped it from happening.

"Let's try again." Fukasaku leaps onto his shoulder and places his hands together. "Senpou: Ryosei no Jutsu!"

As he tries it, both of them close their eyes and prepare for the technique to begin. But seconds after using it, Fukasaku is forced off. He chuckles, mumbling, "I guess it's no good."

"Huh?" – Naruto

"The Kyubi rejects me every time I try it. Apparently, it wants you to use its own chakra." – Fukasaku

"So it can control me, right? Fat chance!" Naruto shouts as he crosses his arms over his chest. "Well, what am I going to do now? That was my last shot!"

"I guess there's nothing you can do about it. You have to stand still to use Sage Chakra, and it would be impossible to do it while you were moving. That's like trying to look left while looking right," Says Fukasaku to Naruto.

"That doesn't mean I won't try-" Naruto pauses when he hears that, stopping completely because he was just about to try and gather chakra while running. He then remembers something Kakashi told him back when he was trying to create Rasen Shuriken. "Left and right at the same time, huh? You mean like this?"

Naruto creates a shadow clone and has it look left, while he turns right. Fukasaku sighs. "What does that have to… Wait, I think I know what you're getting at."

"Yeah." Both the clone and the original grin that familiar smile.

Back To Action…

"So this is Konoha? Not as powerful as it use to be, huh?" Rouki speaks as he walks along a roof. Before him are Tsunade and ANBU guards protecting her. She is busy supplying her summoning Katsuya with chakra so she could heal the villagers injured, which are rather numerous.

"Who are you?" An ANBU questions him.

"I'm here waiting for my prey to arrive. Akatsuki sent Pain to capture him, so I'm here to make sure he dies by my hand." Rouki says before sitting beside a stone pillar.

"You… You're after Naruto too, aren't you?" – Tsunade

"Naruto is a sage now so he won't be completely overwhelmed by Pain when he returns, and as long as I'm here I'll make sure no one falls to them." Rouki's words cause Tsunade to flinch a little.

"What? You're not with Akatsuki?" – ANBU

"Then you're one of Hao's men." Tsunade causes Rouki to lose his temper a bit, making him transform his weapon and fire a round at her. It misses intentionally, but the fact that he used that still surprises her. 'Omega Arts?'

The other ANBU gather before her, guarding the Hokage from Rouki. "I only have to listen to one person," His eyes trail off to the side when he notices someone approaching. "Here comes one of them."

Rouki hops off the ceiling, just as Pain lands before Tsunade and her guards. Surprisingly, this Pain is the one who was just fighting Kakashi a moment ago, God Realm. Tsunade instantly recognizes him as a certain person; her mind brings up an image of three kids, with one being Konan, another being someone else, and the last being this guy. "You're that kid?"

"The Slug Princess, you are the last one of the Sannin." – Pain

"Hokage-sama, do you know this guy?" – ANBU

"A little." – Tsunade

"Where is Naruto Uzumaki? Where is the Kyubi?" Pain questions them.

"Who knows?" Tsunade replies in a smirk attitude.

Pain closes his eyes and says, "I have captured all but two of the Biju. There is no point in hiding him. The ninja villages have lost their equilibrium of the monsters. Soon a war will break out for him; if you cooperate with me then I will be willing to help you. I can only assume you know of our power."

"Fuck you! You're just a bunch of terrorists trying to take over the world! Like I'm going to listen to a word you say!" Tsunade yells at him.

Pain opens his eyes and glares dead into the woman's eyes. "Hypocrite. Your peace revolves around the violence towards us."

"I've never said everything Konoha has done is right, but your way of doing things is just as wrong." – Tsunade

"Where is he?" Pain questions once more, releasing some of his chakra to get his point across.

"We will use everything in our power to defeat you. You won't be getting Naruto regardless of what happens." – Tsunade

Pain sighs and then says, "You can't protect that kid forever. Konoha-

"Wrong," Tsunade says to him, causing him to stop talking halfway through. "Naruto is stronger than you."

Meanwhile…

"There are six Pains, and each one can only use a single technique… That woman can use Summons, but the man Jiraiya-sama brought back could use it…Inoichi-san, when you dove into that body's mind, did you see any of these piercings on the woman's face?" Shizune questions Inoichi while holding up one of the piercings that use to be on the man's body. She is with him, Ino, Samui and an ANBU guard.

"No. She was just a dead body." – Inoichi

"I see. So then it's just like Fukasaku-sama said; Pain has the power to revive the dead. He can then use the chakra receivers to control any body he wants. If that's true then they're all zombies." Shizune concludes, realizing what is truly going on.

"So, if each body has a receiver, then shouldn't there be a transmitter?" Samui asks.

Shizune nods and sweats a bit. "Exactly. This brings some validity to the message, 'The real one's not among them', meaning none of the Pains is the true mastermind of Akatsuki. There must be someone behind the scenes giving them chakra signals from the shadows."

"So there's another one?" – Ino

"This one must have allot of chakra to control six bodies at once." The ANBU guard adds.

"He must be hiding somewhere near the village to give out orders. We need to make a search party to go after him!" Shizune says.

Suddenly, without warning, someone lands in between the group. It's the Human Realm Pain. Before they could make an action at him, he drops a smoke ball and has it set off. The ANBU, Ino and Inoichi make it out in time. "He didn't even register on my senses!"

The smoke clears up soon, and shows Human Realm holding Shizune by her head. "Don't move an inch, or she'll die."

The ninjas stop in their tracks, unable to make a move on him. Suddenly Samui comes up from behind to stab him using her Odachi. He turns around and uses her body as a shield, causing Samui to pierce through the nurse's chest. She screams, "Shizune-san!"

"Myoboku-zan, eh?" He mumbles, releasing his hold on her head.

'He used the same technique as our family! Except he can do it in seconds and without equipments!' – Ino

Back with the main Pain he says, "So, he's not here at all. Myoboku-zan."

"What?" Tsunade is completely shocked to find out that Pain now knows. With this knowledge he may leave the village to search for Naruto.

"If he's not here then there's no point in staying. Also," Pain turns around and begins to walk away, his eyes catching a glimpse of chakra around their feet. "The chakra in your feet is to guard against my technique? Because that kid told you about me when I fought the Copy Ninja?

"Pointless. Everything is meaningless to overwhelming power. You villages have proven that," Pain begins, Rouki listening intently while on the side of the wall. "You think you're the only ones that matter. You think you can put off death. But peace has made you foolish. If you kill someone, someone else will kill you. Hatred binds you together."

"I've had enough of your bullshit!" She yells at him.

"War brings Pain and injury to both sides." – Pain

"The great nations have suffered as well! You don't know shit!" – Tsunade

"Only those who know pain can know true peace." Pain leaps high up into the air.

The Human Pain leaps up into the air, leaving the ninjas below to pine over Shizune. Her eyes close up slowly as the life finally leaves her. As Ino heals her, Samui chases after the Pain, tears coming down her eyes. "Get back here!"

…

"Bad news, Fukasaku!" A fellow member of Myoboku-zan frogs says to Fukasaku, who is with Naruto at the moment. "Kousuke, the messenger at Konoha, has been killed!"

"What?" Fukasaku shouts, shocked to hear such a thing has even happened.

"His name has disappeared from the scroll!" He says, holding out the scroll that holds all the frog's names. There exists a space in between two.

"Does that mean something is going on in Konoha?" – Fukasaku

"He's already there, huh…" Figures Naruto, grabbing his sword and strapping it around his waist.

The two frogs head to a small pond, Fukasaku saying, "I'm counting on you. You have to tell her!"

"Yes sir!" The nameless frog hops into the pond.

Meanwhile, the Animal Pain has retreated to the outside of Konoha. She then dispels her summons and places her hand on the ground, speaking, "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

Soon all but one of the Pains, including a busted up Asura, appears before her. Konan is there as well. Konan asks, "What's going on?"

"I'm going to do that." She says to her, causing the living person to gasp.

Myoboku-Zan…

That frog from earlier crawls out while drenched in water. "I gotta hurry!"

"Thankfully Shima's already near Konoha gathering supplies. The three of us can summon something pretty strong." – Fukasaku

"Right. Well, I best get prepared. Can't go back looking like this!" Naruto begins to quickly strip out of his battered electric outfit to wear the black and orange jumpsuit.

Back at Konoha Shima leaps on the gates and sees all the destruction Pain has caused. "What is this?"

"Shima!" That frog from earlier manages to reach her, while still wearing the liquid and in a meditation stance. "Fukasaku-sama sent me to tell you-

"Time for summoning, huh?" – Shima

"Don't do it! You'll shorten your life span!" Konan yells at the Pain group, but by the time she gets her words across they each collapse to the ground. Sweat falls down her face as she turns to face the village. "You really want revenge on this village, do you Nagato?"

"Pain!" Tsunade chases after the main Pain still in the air, who is preparing to do something.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" – Shima

"Shinra Tensei!" A massive gravity well release above Pain, crushing everything else underneath it in a titanic explosion empowered with gravitational force.

A huge crater forms in the middle of the village, blowing away everything to the side. It looks like there's a giant hole in the middle of the ground surrounded by garbage. Soon the rubble and smoke stops billowing, and everything is silent. Sakura manages to pull herself out of a Katsuya slug clone, its chakra having saved her life.

She looks before her at the village and the destruction Pain has caused. Tears begin to flow from her eyes as she sees her beloved home in such a state. She scream, "NO!"

Elsewhere on the other side Ino, Inoichi and the ANBU come out from Katsuya. They then see the fallen bodies of Samui and Shizune, one killed by a sword and the other crushed by the gravity. Nearby Hinata comes out from the rubble, better off than the others a bit.

As Pain lands he notices a dome of diamonds has been dugged down into the ground. He approaches it, and notices the diamonds shattering to pieces. Rouki walks out holding Chromedread. "You've really gone and done it now."

"…And just who are you?" After Pain questions him, Rouki looks off to the side, noticing a large puff of smoke gathering. Using Kuro Getsuga he disappears in a flash, not wanting to get involved just yet. The smoke around that specific area clears up, revealing who has now arrived to the scene.

A teenager with blond spiky hair stands. He has a thick scroll wrapped behind him on a brown strap. On his right leg is a ninja pouch and in his left arm is a sheathed katana. His costume consists of an orange and black jumpsuit with black sandals, a red cloth that drapes down and has a black pattern at the bottom to look like lightning rising up, and a black clothed hitai-e. This is Naruto Uzumaki in Sage Mode.

He sits Indian style on top of Gamakichi with Fukasaku plopped on his head of hair. Underneath Gamakichi and beside them is Gama Bunta, the toad boss summon, Ordile, the lizard boss of the Yamata scroll, and Yamata, the snake boss of the same scroll.

Pain notices their presence and lands, completely concealed within the smoke of the destroyed village. "So instead of us coming to you, you saved us the trouble."

Kenshin: And with that, we end this chapter. But it now brings up some questions; who is Hakurei, what are the five demon beasts, what will Rouki do now that Naruto's back?

Julia: How will Naruto's battle go against Pain?

Kenshin: Ah, who cares about that? Anyway, I want to give out a special mention to someone named Zidiane. He is writing a story called Team Naruto and needs a little moral support from experienced writers.

Julia: Is it good?

Kenshin: TCM read the first two chapters, so he must find it interesting.

Manabu: Next time, on Water Princess, the Trilogy of True Justice Part 2 – The Rinnegan Vs. Metsuryu Mado


	28. The Trilogy of Justice Part 2

_**Naruto and The Water Princess**_

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Static, Rave, Fairy Tail, and One Piece.

Kenshin: Irasshai! Welcome to the Water Princess Rescue Bar; where we serve food, comics, and justice! **turns to Julia**

Julia: I'm not saying it.

Kenshin: Say it!

Julia: **sighs** With half naked women. **a crowd of men show up**

Kenshin: See? It worked!

Julia: I'm going to kill you if someone starts asking me to shake it.

Kenshin: Shake what?

Manabu: **face palms himself** Anyway, Naruto faces off against Pain with the boss summons, and begins to question his ideals. He then loses control and someone starts to utilize his full power.

Omake-

"I'm up!" Haku shouts, having finally woken up from being put to sleep by that poison. He looks around to see that his is in the hospital. "Wow. How long was I out?"

He looks to the side of his bed to see a couple of letters and some flowers for him. He reads them, noticing that most are from Orin and his friends in Kiri. "Those guys… Well, better get changed."

Haku begins to change his clothes, going into his uniform placed beside his bed. Before he could, the door blasts wide open, and in walks Orin and Kenta. "Haku! We brought you something to-

She pauses when she realizes that Haku is already out of his pjs, exposing his boxers. Both she and him blush in surprise, and in a frantic attempt to put his pjs back on he slips and falls out the window.

* * *

Pain notices the presence of his prey and his team, and lands, completely concealed within the smoke of the destroyed village. "So instead of us coming to you, you saved us the trouble."

Naruto opens his eyes and looks around, seeing nothing but smoke and destruction. "What the hell? Are we on old Namek?"

"I don't see any enemies. You had better have given me a good reason for summoning me!" Ordile growls as he looks around.

Shima hops up to where Naruto is, gathering their attention. Fukasaku asks, "What's goin' on, Ma? Why didn't ya summon us ta Konoha?"

"This is Konohagakure no Sato! Look around!" Naruto gasps in shock when he hears that, and begins to look around. Eventually they spot the giant heads of the Hokage. A dark look gathers up on her face as she continues by saying, "It's clear who did this… I see the same energy as when we were atop Jiraiya-chan's shoulders."

Naruto's expression slowly changes from the shock he got when learning this is the village he was raised in. It becomes upset, to tense, to anger, to pure hatred. This last change in emotion causes scales to rise up his neck and his eyes to turn yellow-green.

Back in the surrounding area of the village, the citizens of Konoha begin to come out of the many clones of Katsuya. Some are still injured by the power Pain used to destroy the village, while others died because of that and their former wounds by the other ones.

Tsunade breaks free from a stone formation that protected her and an ANBU guard. She gasps in shock at the destruction of her village. A bit of tears begin to form as she grits her teeth in anger. "Pain… This is completely unforgivable!"

The ANBU still with her notices something a little odd, and that's when his eyes glance at her forehead. 'Her forehead mark is gone… She's already released the art of Mitotic Regeneration. She routed her chakra to Katsuya, just to protect the villagers from Pain's jutsu… Eventually, she'll…'

Hinata looks out into the distance using her Byakugan, and she sees someone standing on top of a frog next to a crocodile and a hydra. 'Naruto!'

Meanwhile, the five Pains manage to regain consciousness and stand up, ready for action once again. Well, except for the Asura Realm. Naraku Realm summons a giant monster-like thing, which has the same eyes as the others, pops up from the ground. It opens its mouth and extends an arm-like tongue to grab hold of the dead robot's body. It then devours its, chewing it up, and then spits it back out. For some reason it's as good as new.

"Why are you trying so hard…?" Konan questions the Pains. Like before, Asura grabs Animal and begins to launch her.

"This is…my justice." She is sent flying high through the sky, soaring above Konoha.

'Whenever he focuses on the Tendo his jutsu output is much stronger, but it's risky. The five others are recovering slower than the last time.' "From here on out, I'll look after you. No more paper clones." Konan disperses into paper slips, vanishing away.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Animal Realm summons the other five into the sky beside her. They each land in front of God Realm.

"All six together." Fukasaku states, looking down at the six ninjas down there.

Tsunade steps forward, approaching the six Pains. She doesn't notice Naruto behind her with his own army. "I am the Godaime Hokage! I won't let you trample on the dreams of my predecessors anymore!"

Naruto remains silent as she speaks, his anger slowly releasing. He eventually loses his scales and his eyes return to the normal Sage mode version. "I will finish you all now!"

"You finally comprehend Pain. Too bad… I don't want you." God Realm says to the old woman.

Asura Realm dashes quickly towards Tsunade, drills and spikes extending from his right arm. "The one I seek…

"…IS ME!" A huge diamond spike crashes down on the Asura Realm Pain, destroying the robot zombie and putting him down for the count.

5 Pains Left

Tsunade pauses in surprise when she sees Naruto high up in the sky. The dragon slayer lands between the Hokage and his villains of Akatsuki, his feet breaking the ground the moment he landed. He glares at the five ninjas before him, the wind blowing in the background.

As Tsunade looks at him, she could see the images of Minato and Jiraiya through him, as if he now resembles them. Without even looking at her, he says, "There's no point in the Hokage to bother herself with my problem. Go find a pleasant spot and drink some booze calmly."

"Naruto…" – Tsunade

"What happened? What's going on?" Sakura asks as she drags herself up.

"It's incredible. Naruto has returned," Says a fellow Hyuga, not Hinata, who helps her up, "And he just KO-ed a Pain with one hit."

"Naruto? He's back?" Sakura asks in surprise. He nods and looks ahead. She turns to the battlefield, and smiles a little. 'Naruto…'

"Hey gramps, doesn't he remind you of those two?" Gama Bunta asks Fukasaku.

"Yeah. He has indeed surpassed Jiraiya-chan and his father." Fukasaku says.

"Naruto Uzumaki, do you plan on resisting us to the end?" – God Realm

After pulling Chromedread from the diamond on top of Asura Realm, Naruto makes his signature pose, using his sword to point. "Senjutsu no Break Genkai; Naruto Uzumaki."

* * *

_**Chapter 28: The Trilogy of True Justice Part 2 – The Rinnegan Vs. Metsuryu Mado**_

* * *

Rouki watches from the sidelines while his eyes gain less of a shine. He looks like he has normal human eyes now, just like Manabu. 'Let's see if you can escape this game; win and you'll face me, lose and everything you've worked for will be ruined.'

'God Realm's powers won't be back at the moment. Oh well,' Thinks the main Pain. The others get into formation; Naraku Realm gets behind God Realm, Animal before God, Human Realm to the right of Animal and Preta to the left of Animal.

"Gamakichi," Naruto calls out to the youngest of the frogs, which lands behind Tsunade and the ANBU guard. "Get Tsunade-ba-chan to safety."

"Roger!" Gamakichi grabs the old lady and begins to lift her up.

"Naruto, can you really take them alone?" – Tsunade

"Of course I can! Just make sure no one else gets involved. I won't have anyone risking their life for me anymore." – Naruto

"Okay, but take Katsuya with you. She has Intel on Pain." Tsunade hands Naruto a small Katsuya slug. Fukasaku grabs it and places it on the scroll as he and Shima land on it.

"Katsuya, hide yourself in his clothes." He whispers to the slug, which does just that.

"I probably shouldn't say this, and I hope I'm wrong, but now that I've mastered nature energy, I can sense everyone's chakra. With my lightning dragon slayer powers it's much easier to recognize chakra…" This is when he gets quiet, for even now while motionless he can accurately sense the chakra of his cohorts, friends and loved ones. And as he does, a small bit of tears fall down from his right eye, splashing onto the ground he stands. "Are Samui and Kakashi out on a mission away from the village?"

She didn't say anything. She couldn't. She knows full well about his feelings for Samui, and the bond he shared with Kakashi. To say it would only upset him even more.

"Okay. Go, Gamakichi!" On his orders the toad leaps away, taking the old lady with her to the others. The ANBU guard follows.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Animal Realm Pain places her hand to the ground, summoning a giant rhino creature. It charges forward towards Naruto, preparing to ram him through.

Electricity wraps around his right hand, taking the form of a dragon claw. He then holds it out, his eyes flaring in anger, and collides with the beast.

Meanwhile, Tsunade is taken to the sidelines, where Sakura is. "Shishou!"

"Sakura…" Sakura begins to approach her, but slows down when she realizes how old she looks now. In fact, her age seems to be rising. "It's all right now…"

The smoke clears from the collision, and Naruto can be seen holding back the rhino with his right charged hand. He then adjusts his grip and hoists him up into the sky. The Animal Path summons two more creatures, a winged dog and a two-horned ram. They both charge for Naruto.

Without taking his eyes off of Pain, Naruto bends down to allow both Shima and Fukasaku to leap up into the sky and perform a jutsu. "Senpou: Kawazu Uta!"

Both release a powerful shriek that stops the two summoning monsters in their tracks. With this distraction Naruto rushes in while performing the shadow clone technique. With two clones by his side he molds a Rasengan in their hands, which begin to grow bigger and bigger. The real Naruto leaves his clones alone as he charges towards the Pains.

"Senjutsu: Odama Rasengan!" Both Rasengan slam into the summoning creatures, sending them back towards Naruto's summons.

"Bunta-chan! Hi-chan! Or-chan!" Fukasaku calls on the three summonses, just as he and Shima land, and the two clones disappear.

"Coming right up!" Gama Bunta leaps up into the air, drawing his giant blade.

"I don't like being told what to do." Ordile's scales begin to ooze lava, before he launches up into the air towards the rhino.

"I hate frogs too, but under Naruto's orders we are to follow them." Yamata begins to charge up a beam of pressurized water and then fires it at the ram.

Naruto on the other hand continues to charge at the Pains, until Preta gets before them. Katsuya slithers up to his shoulder and says, "Naruto-kun, ninjutsu doesn't work on the Pain in front of you. He can absorb all ninjutsu based attacks."

"Is that so? Then I'll use Kawazu Kumite!" Naruto draws the Twilight Star and transforms it into Final Arcana. He then throws them both at the Preta Realm, who is forced to leap up into the air to avoid. Naruto jumps up as well, and mounts a roundhouse kick to his face. He dodges and jabs his black blade at him, missing as well.

But then suddenly, a force blows the Preta Realm down to the ground, skidding and slamming until he reaches a halt.

"Take this!" Gama Bunta stabs the dog he went after with his blade.

"Gokaku Daikaen!" Ordile crashes into the rhino, blowing it up on impact.

"Mizu Kosen!" Yamata fires her beam at the ram, cutting it in half.

All but the dog disperses into smoke, leaving the old toad to land on it. It yelps and tries to get up, but is forced back down. "An insolent pup should behave."

4 Pains Left

God Realm Pain looks at Naruto with his ringed eyes. The Preta Realm Pain lies dead and unless, unable to save anyone from the ninjutsu specialist Naruto. Speaking of which, Naruto manages to flip in the air and land gracefully, grabbing hold of both returning 'boomerang' blades. 'Didn't he dodge him?'

'Kawazu Kumite utilizes the nature energy all around one. That energy became part of Naruto and attacked Pain, and he wouldn't be able to absorb it because it isn't chakra that hit him. It just shows how powerful Sage Mode can be; both threat perception and attack capabilities are far enhanced beyond the ordinary! It makes some validity to Naruto's word and pose.' – Fukasaku

'My strongest technique should finish the job.' "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" After sheathing the Twilight Star, Naruto summons two clones beside him, who begin their job of collecting chakra and wind at the center of his palm.

"So, you've become a Sage, and you've acquired the same jutsu as Jiraiya-sama." Gold Realm speaks.

"Jiraiya-sama?" – Naruto

"Jiraiya taught me jutsu a long time ago. He was also once my teacher," Continues the God Realm. Naruto stays quiet as he listens to him, but his anger starts up again. "We are fellow disciples of Jiraiya, students of the same teacher, and yet you and I can't understand each other. I figured someone who desired peace, just as he did, would stop this foolish resistance and give up."

"You bastard," Naruto mutters as he holds his right hand up. As one can see, the Rasen Shuriken has returned. His eyes take a quick glance at his sides to view the village, or what's left of it, and shouts, "HOW THE FUCK CAN YOU KILL PEOPLE WITHOUT REMORSE AND CALL IT PEACE?"

"A brat who judges by a single tree and not the whole forest can never comprehend the true meaning of peace, even you who wields the Twilight Star. Just left yourself be captured; your death shall lead this world to the peace it so longed for." – God Realm

"What the hell is that? Ya taught 'im that, Pa?" Shima asks Fukasaku, a little curious about the giant shuriken Naruto now holds.

"Nah. First time I'm seein' this actually. Never once popped it out durin' trainin'…I wonder what he's plannin' to do?" – Fukasaku

"Like I said; PEACE CAN NEVER BE ACCHIEVED THROUGH THE DEATH OF EVEN A SINGLE LIFE!" Naruto throws Tenryu no Rasen Shuriken at his enemies, causing it to spin through the air just like last time. Unlike the last time though, it isn't dispelling or coming apart.

"He threw it!" – Shima

"What's he doing now?" Sakura asks the Hyuga.

"He just threw a shuriken made of swirling wind." – Hyuga

"Tenryu no Rasen Shuriken! So he can control it now?" – Sakura

God Realm and Naraku Realm manage to jump out of the way, quickly avoiding the attack. Human Realm grabs Animal Realm and throws her to the side, since neither of them is strong enough to make it out at their speed.

That's when the shuriken expands, and rips through Human Realm like an electric saw through wood.

3 Pains Left

Animal Realm takes this chance to perform Kuchiyose, and summons a drill mouthed bird that flies towards Naruto. He leaps up and avoids it, electricity gathering around him. The Rasen Shuriken continues towards the wall, exploding and causing a huge explosion.

"Juuken Gattai! Shining Adamants!" Naruto fires millions of diamonds the size of nails at the bird, tearing thousands of holes into the creature. It crashes and disappears into smoke, and Naruto lands on the ground, his sword having lost its blade and hilt.

"Deidara was right; you don't listen." – God Realm

Back in the sidelines Shikamaru notices the fight going on and begins to pick himself up. But his right leg is injured from God Realm's attack. "What the? Who's fighting?"

"Naruto-kun." – Katsuya

"Naruto? He's back?" – Shikamaru

"Yes. He has mastered Senjutsu and is now battling Pain. There are about three left of him now." – Katsuya

"Then I better-Ah!" Shikamaru grabs hold of his busted up leg, realizing he won't be doing anything soon.

"Naruto-kun has asked that no one interfere." – Katsuya

"He's so full of himself! Those guys destroyed our village, and he wants to fight them alone?" – Shikamaru

"No," Shikaku states, gathering his son's attention. "If he's mastered Senjutsu, he's in a class of his own now. The best thing we can do is stay out of his way. Injured people like us will only hold him back."

Shikamaru's eyebrows lower and he clenches his teeth, "You can't be serious."

That dog summon manages to break free, and now splits into two. Gama Bunta falls back when it does. The dogs go after Ordile and Yamata, who are unprepared for that trick. Yamata's opponent manages to rip her neck off while Ordile grips his opponent in his jaws.

Yamata's head begins to grow back, with one extra addition added. "Stupid dogs should stay down when it's necessary. Double Mizu Kosen!"

"Ma, ya know what to do, right? We gotta break the link!" Fukasaku tells his wife.

"I know!" – Shima

Naruto chases after the Animal Realm, his sword slowly restoring itself through Chromedread. He utilizes his own physical strength to beat her down. As they fight, God Realm and Naraku Realm watch him intently. They could also see that his Senjutsu is starting to wane rapidly, all because of that shuriken he used.

'I have to stop this Pain before I run out! That way the summonings will end!' Naruto figures in his head as he continues to battle against the girl zombie.

"Bunta-chan! I'm going to hurl ya at Naruto-chan! All you have to do is swallow him and that woman!" – Fukasaku

Shima blows a sandy wind at the Pains and Naruto, concealing them in a sandy smokescreen. Neither of them could see clearly of what was going on. But they had to run quickly to avoid Gama Bunta stabbing his blade down at them.

Animal Realm looks around, seeing nothing but complete darkness. Looking ahead she sees someone coming up to her. Soon a bit of light shines, in the form of twin Rasengan. Both spheres bash her at the same time, tearing her clothes to shreds. "Senjutsu: Rasenrengan!"

(Sage Technique: Spiraling Sphere Barrage)

Gama Bunta makes a loud burp, releasing smoke from his mouth. It is then that they realize Naruto and the Animal Path are inside of his mouth. The dogs disappear, leaving a tired Ordile and a 3 headed exhausted Yamata relieved. Gama Bunta then releases the two in his mouth, with the Animal Path dead.

2 Pains Left

"No more Sage Mode, eh?" God Realm says, now sensing that Naruto has depleted his supply. It's the perfect time to finish this fight.

"Naruto!" – Yamata

'I can't believe I can only perform two Rasen Shuriken in Sage Mode. Oh well; they're down to two now.' – Naruto

God Realm takes this moment to dash towards Naruto now that he's tired, "Here's my chance."

"He's out of Sage Chakra! We need to fuse with him!" Shima says to Fukasaku, joining up with him.

"We can't," His words cause Shima to double take.

'Good thing I got this planned.' Naruto digs into his pocket and draws out a tiny metal disk, his special saucer. He throws it out and transforms it, and then hops aboard to escape into the sky. But since his chakra is still in the loop, he can only manage to stay a few feet airborne.

"So we can't merge with him because of that damn fox? What are we going to do?" – Shima

"Don't worry. Naruto-chan has come up with his own solution. He's about to do it right now." – Fukasaku

Naruto flies past Gama Bunta, leading Pain right towards him. God Realm leaps up to avoid a stab coming from Gama Bunta, running up the side of his arm. Naruto starts to gain control of his chakra, and pulls out the scroll hanging behind him, when Pain manages to throw one of his bladed weapons behind his left knee.

"AH!" This shot causes Naruto to lose balance and fall off, plopping on the ground and dropping the scroll. Naruto pulls it out and throws it away, just as Pain manages to land in front of him.

"Naruto-chan, over here! I'll do it!" Fukasaku rushes up to meet with Naruto, who now has to face Pain. Seeing as he's distracted, he tosses over the scroll to Fukasaku, who begins to unravel it. He then places it on the ground, revealing a symbol on the scroll. He then performs the art of reverse summoning.

A Naruto clone appears on the scroll in a meditation stance, one he does whenever he tries to go into Sage Mode. "Okay, now release the jutsu!"

While still clashing with Pain in a fistfight, Naruto mentally forces the clone to disperse. Pain draws the blade Naruto threw just a moment ago, and prepares to assault him with it.

The blond dragon sage slaps at it, causing the weapon to break; He's now back in Sage Mode. Naruto then charges electricity around his right foot, and kicks Pain in the face. He blocks, but still gets sent flying.

"So that's what he did!" – Shima

"Yep. Naruto-chan prepared two clones a head o' time to gather Sage Chakra and maintain a holdin' pattern. He then summons them from Myoboku-zan and dispels them to regain the chakra they've gathered," Explains Fukasaku, telling his dear wife about Naruto's brilliant plan.

"Senjutsu," Naruto gathers electricity around his hands, pouring as much chakra through his bloodline's power as possible. He then places his hands together and pulls back, summoning the all too familiar light blue halberd. He holds it in his right hand, and then throws it at Pain, "Rairyu no Hotengeki!"

Before it could reach Pain, another Pain hops in the way and sets up a barrier around him. Naruto lifts his head up to see who that Pain is, and realizes that it's the same guy who could absorb chakra, the one he sent flying with Kawazu Kumite.

'Didn't I get that guy? There's no way he could have survived that blow…' Naruto narrows his eyes and turns to face the key player among the Pain, Naraku Realm. This Pain is standing beside that monster that revived the Asura Realm. It now sinks into the earth. Naruto turns to Katsuya, still on his shoulder, and asks, "It was him, wasn't it?"

3 Pains Left Now

"That Pain has the ability to revive the other members. It explains why it stayed in the back when they formed that position." Katsuya tells Naruto, remembering the information she received by being all over the village, "The strongest one is the Pain on the left. He can repel all jutsu and attacks, as well as pull things towards him. The strangest thing is that he hasn't used his power yet… Maybe he can't use it at the moment."

"Then I got to get rid of that one quick huh? But first, Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Naruto summons two clones beside him, and forms a Rasengan for each of them to hold. "Hold these! Gilgamesh!"

As they hold onto the spheres, he strikes the ground with Gilgamesh, which has finally become a full sword now, and creates a smokescreen. Since he has a sword that can cause explosions he doesn't find the reason to carry smoke bombs in the first place. With the explosion big enough to conceal them, and more, Naruto begins his plan.

The three Pains watch and get into formation, God in the middle with Preta in front and Naraku in back, as they await Naruto's next move. That's when a giant bird made of lightning comes flying out from the smoke towards them. The Preta Realm prepares itself and receives the attack, attempting to absorb it, but soon it realizes something's up. The lightning quickly disperses and Naruto is shown in its place. 'He cloaked himself in so much electricity he couldn't be seen within, and quickly reclaimed it so I wouldn't absorb it!'

Naruto performs a Naruto Lariat to knock it down, relying on brute strength than electricity. With both of them out of his line of sight, God Realm could see Rasen Shuriken coming straight towards him. Naruto is safe from wind attacks so something like this wouldn't hurt him at all, but he had to get this one out of the way.

Unfortunately, the attack explodes into nothing. God Realm Pain speaks, "My power has finally returned."

"He repelled it!" Yamata speaks as she and the other summons dash towards the enemy. They only stayed out of the way for the moment because of how much his Rasen Shuriken would hurt.

Naruto blocks the vision of the hungry ghost to make sure he couldn't look up, because down from the skies appears a Naruto clone. He crashes down onto the Naraku Realm Pain, slamming twin Rasengan in his back, "Senjutsu: Rasenrengan!"

"What?" God Realm looks back, and sees that the Naraku Realm has been defeated. Apparently, Naruto used a smoke screen to cover his plan; He transformed into his attack just to make sure Preta Realm didn't absorb the real attack coming up, although he also anticipated the fact that they might fail so he also had a clone fly high up on his saucer to take out the Naraku Realm, to make sure he didn't bring the others back.

2 Pains Left

"Taste explosions!" Naruto lifts his sword up and prepares to slam it down, about to blast the hungry ghost Pain's face off.

"Kaminari Punch!" The clone dashes towards God Realm, about to knock his lights out. But he holds his hands up, and activates his ability; he repels both Naruto and his clone away.

The clone blows up into smoke while the real one rolls all over the ground. He quickly picks himself up and glares at the God Realm. "What the hell was that?"

"It seems the main Pain's power has returned." Naruto looks over his shoulder to see Katsuya has said that. Meanwhile, Gama Bunta, Yamata, and Ordile charge God Realm and Preta Realm. "It was his power that destroyed the village. Maybe because he used too much of it that he had a longer recharge time."

"So I can't just run up and punch him. So what's left?" – Naruto

"Chouji once said there was a five second interval before he could use it again." – Katsuya

"I guess we can still use Genjutsu," States Fukasaku as he rejoins Naruto.

"But I'm terrible at that stuff!" – Naruto

"Me and Ma will do it." – Fukasaku

"Shinra Tensei." God Realm repels all three animals, sending them flying past the village gates in three different directions. Yamata crashes into a forest and has her stomach impaled. Ordile lands in a river and crusts over. Gama Bunta flies past the village until he stops rolling finally.

"Boss Gama! Ordile! Yamata!" Naruto yells as he witnesses his partners get blown away. With that last attack soon the entire village realizes Naruto is in battle. "He got them… Five seconds right?"

"I'll prepare the genjutsu, but it'll take time. You distract him long enough for me to do it!" Fukasaku says to Naruto, already coming up with a plan.

"Alright. He's after me, so he won't even care about you two. Makes me wish I could use more clones to gather chakra." Naruto says as he sheaths the Twilight Star and prepares a draw stance. 'If I make anymore than three that'll disturb the one gathering chakra, and all I could manage was two to gather the chakra.'

"You're strong," God Realm says as he walks towards Naruto. Preta Realm stands beside him. "No one else has managed to push Pain this far. But this is where it ends.

"Bansho Tennin." Pain holds his hand out to Naruto, and manages to draw him forward. Naruto eventually becomes drawn in, and comes flying towards Pain. He releases his sword and summons lightning around his hands.

"Senjutsu: Rairyu no Yari!" Naruto creates spears of lightning and throws them at God Realm as he approaches him, but Preta Realm pounds him in the stomach, causing him to lose control of their path and miss. Preta then grabs Naruto and puts him into a full nelson. "Hey, let go!"

"This is where our game ends." – God Realm

'Just hang in there kid! We're halfway there!' – Fukasaku

"Please. I wanted you to waste that. Now I can do this!" Naruto opens his mouth and prepares to fire Rairyu no Hoko. But not a single thing came out of his mouth. No spark at all. Eventually he realizes something is up, and his chakra seems to be depleting. "What's going on?"

"There's a reason why I chose to revive Preta Realm. He's the only one able to absorb chakra. It can be used defensively to block ninjutsu, or offensively to drain you of your Sage Chakra." God Realm tells Naruto, as his Sage Mode begins to wear off. Soon the markings near his eyes go out, bringing back a plain, weak Naruto. "Now, the Kyubi has been captured."

"Not yet. I've still got a few tricks up my sleeve." Naruto begins to come up with a plan, trying to think of any way he can get out of this situation. He can't be expected to wait for Fukasaku and Shima to use their genjutsu in time before God Realm blows them away. He needs their attention on them or it won't work. 'I won't give up! Not to this bastard! Come on, Sage Mode!'

Naruto closes his eyes and lowers his head, preparing to try Sage Mode again. Since he can't move it would be perfect to do, despite the Preta Realm stealing his chakra. What neither he nor Pain expected is that the nature energy he gathered is hard for the Preta Realm to control, and as it did it loses control and morphs into a frog. Soon Frog Pain begins to recede into a stone statue, like all the others who failed to learn Senjutsu.

With his Sage Mode back on Naruto busts free and opens his mouth, firing Tenryu no Hoko at God Realm. It blows him away, causing him to crash back where the Animal Path is. "Now he's the only one left."

1 Pain Left

"That may not be true, Naruto-kun," The words of Katsuya gather Naruto's attention. "Apparently, someone may have discovered that these Pains, even that one, are just puppets. There's someone else hidden in the shadows."

"There's a seventh pain in the neck?" Naruto releases electricity to capture his sword and saucer, holding the former in his right hand and the latter in his left.

Back with God Realm he stands back up, completely unharmed, and holds his left hand up. At that moment Fukasaku and Shima manage to gather enough Sage Chakra to perform their Genjutsu. "Alright, let's get-Whoa!"

Fukasaku is pulled towards the God Realm Pain, who is obviously using Bansho Tennin. Naruto realizes what's going on and charges towards Pain, preparing to stop him before he stops their plan. Shima calls out in horror, "Pa!"

"I've had enough of your illusions." Pain draws a black blade from under his sleeves and has Fukasaku get stabbed with it. His blood sprays on the ground as he feels the cold steel pass through his innards.

Back with the summonings they all are out of commission. Gama Bunta has many bones broken from that roll he took. Yamata has a wooden stake in her chest so she had to disappear. Ordile has a head fracture and has dried up from being in the water, so he's out too.

Pain throws Fukasaku off of his blade towards Naruto, who is still coming after him, now out of rage. Caught off guard, Naruto catches Fukasaku, distracted for only a second. Pain uses Bansho Tennin once more, and captures Naruto by his neck. "Like I said, this is the end!"

He slams the blond ninja into the ground, using so much strength he destroys part of the ground. Naruto coughs up blood. His mind is overwhelmed by the strength this Pain has. He had figured his only good powers would be his repelling and attracting jutsus.

With both his sword and saucer out of hand, Pain stabs that same blade through both his hands into the ground. Now that the weapon is in his body he could feel the negating chakra effect it's having on him. A bit of tears come down from Naruto's eyes, not from the pain, but from his weakness at this person's strength. Even those he has gotten stronger with Senjutsu, even though he had an army with him, he still can't overcome the man who killed his sensei Jiraiya.

"Nothing has changed… No matter how strong I get, people have to suffer because of me, and I can't do anything to protect them," Whispers Naruto to himself, more tears coming from his eyes. His eyes glare up at the supposed stand in for Akatsuki, anger growing even more within him. "WHO ARE YOU! WHAT THE HELL DO YOU PEOPLE FIND SO INTERESTING ABOUT ME?"

"Why? Everything happens suddenly. It will all become clearer later." Pain says to Naruto, stomping on his head to keep him quiet. "But now that you can't move I might as well talk to you, about peace and justice, and how your views are foolish."

"Peace? Don't give me that shit! Anything you do won't last!" – Naruto

"Through justice, I will bring peace to this world." – Pain

"Like I said a million times before, no one can talk about peace if they go around killing people without remorse! Ero-sennin, Samui, everyone here, my village, what kind of peace can be brought up by another person's death?" – Naruto

"I see. Then what do you want? What do you want out of life?" Pain asks him, bending down to look Naruto in the eyes.

"I don't care for justice, or the whole good and evil concept, but all I wanted to do was grow up doing the right thing! And to bring peace to this world!" Naruto says to Pain, giving his answer.

"That in a way is justice. But you know, my friends, village and even my family, were destroyed too. I hope you didn't live your entire life believing Konoha to be the only ones allowed peace and justice." Pain stands up and continues to look down at him as he spoke.

"Eh? What's that supposed to mean?" – Naruto

"People of the nations make war to protect things their interests, and for national gain. If not then the people would starve. But the battlefield was always our small nation. And each time, our land would be laid to waste. In the end, our small country was left to bear the wounds of war," His circular eyes continue to glare at Naruto's blue eyes. "We both desire the same thing, the peace Jiraiya believed in. But in the end, we're both fighting for our own justice; the justice I gave to Konoha for what they've done is nothing different from what you're trying to do to me.

"Everyone feels the pain of loss the same. You and I know that pain. We are both ordinary human beings driven to seek revenge, calling it justice. But if revenge is called justice, then it will only bring about more justice, thus creating a chain of hatred. In a shinobi world ruled by hate, I cannot see humans as anything more than petty creatures who will never understand each other!" – Pain

Throughout the course of his speech, Naruto has managed to calm himself down enough to listen, and sadly everything he has said is right. The only reason he has gotten stronger, the only reason he wanted to defeat Pain in the first place, is because of the hatred he feels for him for what he did to Jiraiya. Now he knows full well of how Sasuke felt when he wanted to kill Itachi.

"How would you face this hatred? What is your answer?" – Pain

"…Is that why you created Akatsuki? To bring peace through fear?" Naruto asks, completely dodging his question.

"I formed Akatsuki to destroy that chain of hatred. With the nine beasts I shall create a super weapon that can do much more damage than what I did here; it would decimate an entire land." Naruto's eyes widen in shock when he hears that. If this guy goes on with his plan he would create even more deaths. "People will know true pain, and the fear of that pain will put an end to the world. Eventually time will pass and the pain will heal, and then people will go to war once more, this time with the weapon. Each time someone uses it the world will experience short periods of peace, and no one will need to fight ever again. That is God's answer; that is my answer!"

"I believe in the day that people will understand each other, and peace will truly come! Ero-Sennin believed that! Why couldn't you!" Naruto shouts at him, his anger finally coming back out.

"That is nothing more than a fantasy." Pain pulls forth a second blade. "In the end, all you can do is talk. So you might as well let yourself die for my answer. There's no way someone like you can change the world."

"Hang in there kid!" Shima shouts. This gathers the attention of both Pain and Naruto. "Are you actually listening to him? You're the child of prophecy! Jiraiya and Pa both gave their lives up because they believed in you!"

"Be quiet." Pain uses Shinra Tensei on Shima, blowing her away.

As this happens, Naruto remains quiet. His heart slowly beats as he retreats into the dark recesses of his mind. There, Naruto's mind goes back to all the events that have gone on in his life; all the way back from when he first picked up the Twilight Star, up to this moment. He continues to think of why all this had to happen to him. Why him? Why is everything terrible happening to him? His parents are dead, he has lost his mentors Kakashi, Manabu and Jiraiya, one of the women he loves is dead, and people he cares about are getting hurt because of him. It is all because his father had to put a stupid animal inside his stomach.

At that moment, all he could think about is pain. This pain he has received throughout the years has given rise to a dark emotion buried deep within his heart.

"Now, it's time to go." Pain prepares to stab another part of his body with his spikes. If he crosses his legs with a second blade he can knock Naruto out through pain and chakra exhaustion.

"Moonlight Sonic!" A wave of energy flies towards Naruto and Pain, causing an explosion that catches them off guard. The smoke goes out and Pain is seen standing straight, while Naruto is still on the ground moping. Soon, Rouki appears onto the scene. "I've had enough of watching."

"You again. Do you really wish to fight him, that you would get in the way of my justice?" – Pain

Rouki laughs and then states, "What about justice? (Nani ga seigi da) What about the human heart? (Nani ga Ningen no kokoro) You're both nothing more than just a bunch of fools who want to get revenge on others, because you can't think up a better answer besides killing!"

"Is that why you stopped us?" – Pain

"Fuck no! I just don't want you taking another person's prey, mine!" Rouki holds his sword out and aims it at Pain's left eye. "Or maybe you will put up a better fight than he will…"

Naruto stands back up, as red electricity sparks around his body. He then looks up to the sky, rears his head back, tears flying out as he screams, "STOP IT!"

Demonic chakra releases from Naruto's body, blowing away a fierce wind. It causes the ground to quake and the air to sizzle. Even Pain and Rouki couldn't stay close to it, and had to run off. The dark chakra rises up into the air, and storm clouds gather around the center of the demon chakra. Lightning strikes down from above, forcing back the two enemies.

Soon the biggest enemy arrives in the form of Kyubi no Yoko, taking control of Naruto's body once more. The electricity burns off his jumpsuit, sadly because he hasn't gotten his insulated orange-black jumpsuits yet. Apparently the vest overtop survives due to being resistant to electricity.

'Naruto' lowers his head and looks down at Pain and Rouki, saying, "Hello there, my dear toys."

* * *

Rouki: This brings an end to this chapter.

Kenshin: Give me back my son!

Rouki: In the next chapter Naruto/Kyubi will fight me and God Realm, and then he'll have a small chat with Nagato. I will then make my final challenge to him.


	29. The Trilogy of Justice Part 3

_**Naruto and The Water Princess**_

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Static, Rave, Fairy Tail, or One Piece.

Kenshin: Hello everyone. As you can see, I've run out of clever openings to welcome you guys in.

Julia: In this chapter Naruto finishes his bout with Pain and speaks with the master behind it all. Rouki then makes his challenge to Naruto, one he can't refuse.

_**Chapter 29: The Trilogy of True Justice Part 3: The Apology**_

* * *

Rouki and Pain steady themselves for battle against this new opponent, Naruto under the control of the nine tailed fox. If this thing has full control over him then the fox could unleash its full power onto both of them. Rouki doesn't seem worried, but Pain does.

"This chakra… What happened?" Sakura questions, her body shaking as she feels the power Naruto has released. It's the same as when they went after Hao.

'Naruto… No…' – Hinata

Kyubi walks over to the two, about ready to have fun, when a light glows underneath his head. Strings of light shoot out and wrap around the fox, bringing him down to his knees. Both Pain and Rouki are taken by surprise.

Kyubi reaches for the center of the sealing, and pulls it off. It is revealed to be the crystal Naruto got from Tsunade. 'A sealing jutsu,' the Kyubi crushes the crystal without trouble, and releases himself from the sealing. 'There we go.'

The Kyubi lunges towards the two. Both of them split up and avoid his attack. Rouki makes the first counter; his body goes under a gross transformation to resemble a black rhino. "Sai-Zoku; Sai Kenkaku!"

Rouki charges towards Kyubi, his horn reared forward. The Kyubi grabs hold of his horn and lifts him up with ease, tossing him into the sky. He then summons a lightning bolt from the clouds to strike him down outside of the village. Kyubi then turns towards Pain, and charges at him.

God Realm stands his ground and uses Shinra Tensei. Knowing what would happen Kyubi summons four tails and stabs them into the ground. As Pain tries to push him back, the ground moves along with him, causing boulders to rise up into the sky. With the recoil coming up, Kyubi grins as he slams his head into Pain's chest and sends him flying.

With Pain immobilized, Kyubi holds his hand up and forces the thunderclouds above to collect in his palm. It condenses to the size of a Rasengan, but instead of spinning it sparks. The Kyubi then prepares to throw it at Pain, but he wouldn't let that hit him. "Bansho Tennin."

Pain pulls one of the giant rocks towards Kyubi, causing him to get hit in the face. He loses control over his ball of thunderclouds and releases it, having the ball go past Pain. The moment it touches rock the attack releases, causing a huge explosion to go off that catches everyone's attention.

The explosion finally lifts, and the Kyubi pulls itself out from the rocks gathered by it. He spots Pain with half his cloak blown off. "Nice try."

'The fox's power is amazing,' Realizes Pain as he stands up.

Pain then leaps up the side of the wall, running away from Konoha. Kyubi laughs and shouts, "What's the matter? Not so fun anymore fighting me, is it?"

Kyubi then chases after Pain, summoning more of his demon chakra. The God Realm continues to venture further into the forest, making sure the Kyubi is following him. Eventually Pain brings his hands together. 'I've brought God Realm close enough,' "Chibaku Tensei!"

A sphere of darkness clumps together between his hands, and he throws it up into the sky right above Kyubi. The sphere begins to gather up random rocks and trees to form around it, creating an even bigger sphere. The Kyubi gets caught up in it.

'Chibaku Tensei? So this fool really is similar to that bothersome Six Path Sage!' Kyubi panics and gathers six tails. With this power up he fires a menacing ball at the sphere, trying to get himself free before it was too late.

But the attack fails to even leave a dent. The Kyubi gets captured into the giant sphere, completely immobilized by its power. The fox tries to pull itself out, and fails completely as rocks begin to cover him up. "Me lose to those eyes? I will never lose to them again! I ABSOLUTELY REFUSE IIIIIIIIIIIT!"

Soon the attack completes, and the Kyubi is fully trapped inside. By the time it finishes the sphere looks like the planet Earth, if it was harvested of all its crops and drained of all its water.

'With the fox being my opponent I needed something of this caliber to defeat him. Although it isn't as big as the one the Six Path Sage made, the job is done; the Kyubi has been captured.' – Nagato

A bit of rumbling goes off at the top of the sphere, catching Pain's attention.

'Destroy everything. Destroy anything that causes you pain.' Inside of Naruto's mind, the Kyubi speaks to Naruto before his cage, summoning more of his chakra.

"K-Kyubi?" Naruto lifts his head up, his eyes having shown dried up tears.

"The only way to end your suffering is to destroy everything that causes you pain. I can help you with that." It says to him, a devious grin hidden underneath the darkness of his cage. Naruto's seal changes a bit, resembling a spiral-like eye. 'The only way to break free and kill this bothersome Six Path Sage wannabe is if I take full control over Naruto and his functions. It's working much better now than it did last time I tried.'

Outside, eight flesh tails sprout out from the Chibaku Tensei. Eventually the head bursts up, revealing a skinned eight tailed fox. It roars as it glares down at all below it.

Inside Naruto crawls over to where the Kyubi is. Already giving into his desire for revenge, the entire hall looks as if it's been tainted by the fox's chakra. The water underneath him is as crimson as blood. Naruto reaches the gate and prepares to pull down on the slip.

A hand reaches out to grab his arm. Surprised to see anyone could have gotten into his head, Naruto quickly turns to see who it was, and double takes when he spots the Yondaime Hokage standing next to him in the last outfit he had on. Minato grabs Naruto and takes him away from the cage. "You!"

"YOU!" Upon seeing the sight of the man who sealed him inside of this cage, the Kyubi immediately loses its composure and becomes enraged. The only other person it hates more than Naruto is this guy and the Six Path Sage.

"Wha-What are you doing here?" – Naruto

"I worked it into the seal spell to make me appear within your mind the moment the seal unraveled to the point you sprouted the eighth tail. I had hoped you would never go this far, especially since I didn't want to see that fox again." Minato says, sighing sadly when he thinks about a special someone. He then turns to face Naruto, and says, "But then again, I did get to see my son as a young man, and it was nice to get out of the stomach for once in almost 17 years, so I guess we're even."

"Dad…" Naruto mutters, his eyes swelling up into tears.

"Come in here you son of a bitch! I'll tear you a new asshole!" The Kyubi threatens, trying its best to get outside the cage.

"Things are getting too noisy in here, so I'll take us someplace else." Minato snaps his fingers and takes him somewhere else, a space placed in the middle of nothingness.

"Dad…" – Naruto

"I guess you did read the letters. I'm glad jiji and Manabu told you." Minato begins, thinking about his friends the Sandaime and the silver samurai star. "I couldn't let anyone else know about the truth behind the Kyubi attack all those years ago. Besides, just being my son has put you in danger."

"Dad…" Naruto walks closer to his father, and jabs his right fist into his face. This takes him off guard, and leaves a bruise on his cheek. "HOW COULD YOU PUT ME THROUGH ALL THIS! WHAT POSSESSED YOU INTO PLACING A MONSTER INSIDE YOUR OWN SON! I don't know whether I should be glad to see you again, or mad at you for all you've done!

"If I wasn't a Jinchuuriki, Sasuke would have never been warped at the last minute! Akatsuki wouldn't be killing people to come after me! And Samui, Ero-sennin, Kakashi-sensei…" Naruto begins to cry again at this point, all his frustration and anger coming out at Minato.

Minato rubs his cheek of the bruise, and looks down at his son. "Naruto, how old are you? 16?"

"17 in a month." Naruto mumbles, wiping his eyes of tears.

"16 years huh? It must have been hard for you. I'm sorry. I guess there's no way I can put on a fatherly face and apologize to you for what I've done." Minato says, a single tear coming down his own left eye.

Naruto finishes clearing the tears away, and says, "It's alright. I'm your son, so I can get over it."

"Naruto, in that letter I told you that I sealed the Kyubi's chakra inside of you because I trusted you would be able to master it. It was because someone would be after the village… Actually, that was a lie." Minato's words cause Naruto to listen carefully. If that was a lie, then why did he put it inside of him? "Someone is after you Naruto, but it isn't because of the fact that you're a Jinchuuriki, or that you're my son. It's because you're your mother's son, and a member of the dragon slaying clan Uzumaki. The way I see it, you would probably be safer if I had named you Namikaze instead of Uzumaki."

"What?" – Naruto

"There was a mastermind behind the attack on the village, who made the Kyubi attack the village in the first place. He's also the one behind your mother's death." Minato explains.

"Huh? But the letter said…"

"That was a lie too. She did have an illness, but she wasn't killed because of it. Her death was caused by him."

"Who?" – Naruto

"This person was the man who made the Kyubi attack our village. I believe he will attack the village again." Minato says, a bit of anger rising in his voice as he speaks.

Naruto frowns and even grits his teeth. " But Konoha is gone."

"Yeah, I saw from your mind," Replies Minato.

"You did?" – Naruto

"I also know about Jiraiya-sensei." – Minato

"…So, who was it that attacked Konoha before? Was it another member of Akatsuki?" Naruto asks.

"Probably… He might have been back then. You've seen him before, the man with the spiral mask." – Minato

Naruto's mind goes back to the image of the Akatsuki ninja he saw with the orange spiral mask, Tobi. "Back then, he knew exactly how to defeat us. This person isn't an ordinary ninja. I believe he may be controlling Pain."

"You're wrong! Pain hates Konoha all by himself! He said our village ruined his a long time ago!" Naruto replies.

"That's right, and that's what the true mastermind is using. He's using Pain's hatred for Konoha to attack it." – Minato

"What? Why? Why is Konoha always a target for these weirdoes?" – Naruto

Minato pauses for a moment and then says, "We live in a world that relies on a Shinobi culture, and because of that there may never be peace and order. Pain told you about his peace, but his way is wrong; despite that he has a rather good point. War exists when one wants to save something precious, and as long as love exists there will always be hatred, and that hatred uses ninjas to get what they want. In the end, this culture of ours will continue to force hatred to breed life to a new Pain each and every time. Each and everyone of us battles that hatred, we ninjas, and it's nothing more than this twisted disordered shinobi world that forced Pain to kill master."

Naruto sighs and grows serious as he reads over his words. "But I can't forgive Pain. I just can't… Yondaime-sama, no, dad, what should I do?"

"…I'm afraid even I don't have that answer. You'll have to find that yourself."

"WHAT? How am I supposed to do that? If you and that perverted sage don't have a clue, how do you expect me to discover it! I'm not smart! I'm not a great ninja! I can't even protect the people I care about…"

Minato places a hand on top of his son's head, causing him to stop. "You will find the answer, 'cause I believe in you."

Naruto looks up into his father's eyes, shocked at the words he used. "You, do?"

"Well, it is the duty of a parent to unconditionally believe in their child, but I know for a fact that you'll find the answer. A person who values all life like you, you may just be the right person." Minato says to Naruto, smiling at his only son. "I have to go now. I spent so much time here taking I didn't realize my chakra was fading. I guess the last thing I can do for you is to rebuild the seal, but I won't be able to do it again."

The seal on his stomach twists back to its original form as Minato spins his hand accordingly. As he fades away, Minato smiles and says, "Konoha can always rebuild… Good luck, Naruto."

The dimension Naruto is inside begins to fade away, and he is brought back to the real world. 'Thanks dad.'

Outside the Chibaku Tensei is beginning to crumble a bit. Pain could see Naruto standing upside down and glaring at him, Sage Mode already active. 'His doubt is erased… What happened to him while he was in there?'

The giant sphere begins to break apart, falling down to the earth below. Naruto remains standing on the piece he is on, until he sees his saucer coming towards him. He leaps up towards it and hops on, and flies down along with the boulders to hide himself.

Naruto looks around to see that he isn't in Konoha anymore. 'I lost my clone when I turned into that giant fox. I guess I can't expect a miracle…'

"Phew! I thought we were going to die!" Katsuya says as she crawls out from underneath Naruto's jumpsuit up his neck.

'I had thought I knew the full extent of the fox's power, but I never would have imagined Chibaku Tensei would fail…' – Pain

"Why are we all the way over here?" Naruto asks Katsuya.

"When the fox took over it tried to fight against the black wolf swordsman and Pain at the same time. It then followed it here. Luckily no one was hurt by the Kyubi." The slug tells Naruto. He could also see that the storm clouds have also lifted from above his village.

"Thank god…" Naruto smiles a little, thanking whatever force allowed for him to not hurt anyone else he cared about.

"Do you finally comprehend pain?" Pain says to Naruto, walking a little closer to him. "You cannot truly comprehend someone else's motivations unless you know the same pain they do, and even then you still may not truly understand each other. That is the cold truth everyone must face, like how it is true that trying to change your friend Sasuke is a pointless adventure full of pain and death."

"…You, Pain, I want you to take me to the Pain master. There is something I have to discuss with him face to face." – Naruto

"Ho… So you've noticed… Konoha ninja really are sharp… Regardless, anymore talking will change nothing at all." God Realm draws forth his blade.

"Let me talk to him! I just want to clear some things out!" – Naruto

"In Sage Mode, you can only use two of those chakra shuriken at a time. And when both are used your Sage Mode will run out." – Pain

"You really want me to fight you, huh?" Naruto says, placing his hand on top of his katana.

"And in the instant that both of your shuriken miss, that will turn the tide of battle for me, because I will not give you anymore chances. I will beat you down to near death, and then haul you off where you will be sealed away." Pain finishes, and then charges at Naruto.

"That blade of yours, I'll be taking it!" Naruto draws the Twilight Star and summons Kuro Getsuga. Using the speed given to him from that, Sage Mode, and electricity charged to his feet, he immediately comes before Pain and grabs hold of the blade. He then kicks him into the direction of where Chibaku Tensei fell and breaks off a piece of the blade. Pain falls face forward to the ground, surprised at the speed he pulled off.

With that instant of peace left for him Naruto stabs his right shoulder with the blade weapon, and begins to use Sage Chakra. This allows him to trace the energy signal being used on him, until he reaches a makeshift tree made of paper. There, Naruto has found the person who controls Pain, Nagato.

'That bastard! He reverse tracked me using Sage Mode! I didn't think anyone would be able to do that…' – Nagato

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Naruto quickly drops both of the weapons and summons two clones beside him. Together they form the Rasen Shuriken in the original's right hand. He then leans down and grabs the Twilight Star, using Gilgamesh to create a smokescreen.

'The first shuriken will appear at me under the cover of a smokescreen. That trick won't work again on me.' Pain says in his head, preparing himself for the first attack.

Like he predicted the Shuriken comes towards him at high speed. He uses Shinra Tensei to destroy it, but he would never have guessed that a second one was right behind it. 'Kage Shuriken no Jutsu?'

As the smoke clears, Naruto can be seen having lost his Sage Mode's influence. Even if he misses, there is still that five-second interval until he can defeat him.

To make sure he doesn't try anything, two clones pop out from two rocks and reach for him. But Pain has this planned; he extends two of his blades out and pierces the clones on their shoulders, using them to lift himself up into the air to avoid the Shuriken at the last minute. It passes by them and crashes in a rock formation behind him. Pain lands further into the rocks and glares at Naruto, with three seconds left until he can launch his attack. With two Shuriken gone he wouldn't have much to worry.

But that's when the other rocks surrounding him transform, and are revealed to be 50 clones of Naruto. It would appear all of the rubble were clones. Each clone draws their swords and prepares to beat down and hack up Pain.

Naruto, the real one, performs the clone technique again, just as Pain holds both his hands up. Soon, it reaches 0 seconds, and Pain unleashes Shinra Tensei upon them all. All of the clones around him puff away. The real Naruto is pushed back, but he has twelve other clones holding him and two more back. He screams in pain from the force of the attack, this one being much stronger than anything he's ever felt.

"You, who has no answer, no solution, it is time for you to give up!" Pain shouts, continuing to force Naruto back.

Naruto continues to resist, and glares at Pain with green eyes. The words of Jiraiya, Minato and Kakashi ring through his mind:

'"But I truly believe that eventually, the day will come when all people will understand one another and live in harmony! Well then, if I can't find the solution, shall I pass my quest onto you?"' – Jiraiya

'"You will find the answer. I believe in you."' – Minato

'"…It's because, I have great expectations out of you as a ninja, Naruto. Out of everyone in your class group, you will be able to surpass Yondaime Hokage."' – Kakashi

Shinra Tensei finally ends, and Naruto can be seen still standing, with two of his clones still standing behind him. Pain remarks, "No way… You're still standing…"

Naruto places the Twilight Star in between his teeth, and summons blue electricity around his entire body. 'What's he planning now? Whatever… He's too far to do anything in five seconds.'

"This body exists to break genkai!" The two clones grab hold of Naruto's arms, take a step forward, and throw him towards Pain. Under the influence of Kuro Getsuga, and electricity surrounding his body, he flies towards Pain at blinding speed.

He adds a spin to his flight as he makes his way towards the God Realm, shouting, "I want you to stop making me give up! Rairyu no Rasentouha!"

(Lightning Dragon's Spiraling Sword Wave)

His spinning skull impacts Pain's stomach, causing him to spin along with him. He mows through the boulders and rocks in his path, resembling a drill in many ways. Naruto eventually releases Pain, and he crashes into a final rock formation. The boy himself falls behind Pain, only slightly injured from that crash.

Being under Dragonforce it doesn't hurt so much, and he quickly stands back up. He then makes his way towards Pain's unconscious body, using his electricity to try and pull out the chakra receivers inside of him. But when he tries he fails, and begins to pull them out by hand. 'I figured trying to pull them out myself would be useless. Oh well… Without these receivers Pain can't get anymore chakra, and he won't be coming back.'

As he pulls out the last one, Naruto begins to think of what Pain said to him minutes ago, about how he wants to defeat Pain just to make himself feel better about Jiraiya's death, and how he would never find a way to stop this circle of hatred. Even as he retraces Nagato's hideout he has his words stuck in his mind.

"Are you going? You'll need reinforcements." – Katsuya

"Nope. I have to handle this myself." Naruto then stands back up, and out from underneath his left foot extends his saucer. He lifts up and flies further into the forest to search him out. Meanwhile Katsuya tells the rest of Konoha about his victory.

Minutes later Naruto flies through the forest heading to see Nagato and speak with him. That's when he hears someone call out, "Naruto!"

He turns around to see the person who called for him, and spots a Hyuga clan member, Shikaku, and Inoichi. He stops in midair and turns to face them, that same sad expression still present on his face. "It's you guys…"

"If you're here… Did you win against the Sixth Pain?" Inoichi asks him.

"… Whether I won or not doesn't matter… In any case, I'm on my way to speak with the mastermind, alone." He says to him.

"You know where he is?" – Hyuga

"Yeah, found him in Sage Mode." – Naruto

"But what do you mean, you want to go alone? What's going on?" – Inoichi

"There's something I want to check out, and I can't do that with someone else around me." Naruto replies, hanging his head down. The shadow of his hitai-e hangs over his eyes.

"Check…out…" Inoichi mutters. An angered look appears on his face as he looks at him.

"I want to have a talk with the Pain master," Explains the boy as he keeps his eyes concealed. During this Shikaku remains quiet.

"How… How can you be so selfish! I mean, yeah, we're all grateful to you for defeating the Pains, but we're way beyond the point of resolving problems through words!"

"THEN WHAT AM I SUPPOSE TO DO, KILL THE MASTER, HIS LOVED ONES, SUBORDINATES AND HIS ENTIRE ENEMY VILLAGE? IS THAT THE WAY KONOHA FIGHTS THEIR ENEMIES?" Naruto snaps.

"And what the hell is talking going to accomplish? He's an enemy that bears a grudge against Konoha! You can't be thinking of forgiving him!" – Inoichi

"The hell I am! He killed my teacher and destroyed my village and the lives of everyone in it! Of course I'm not going to forgive him!" – Naruto

"Then what…

"Inoichi, let's go. Naruto can handle this himself." Shikaku finally says, interrupting the Yamanaka.

"Shikaku?" – Inoichi

"Look, he's the one who stopped the Pains, so he must have an idea of what to do." – Shikaku

"But…" – Inoichi

"Thanks, Shikaku-san." Naruto then flies off to where he was originally going. Just like he planned he would be alone when speaking with the Pain master, except for Katsuya.

Naruto eventually comes before a large tree. Looking at it from a distance it looks just like a normal tree. But up close, and directly looking at it, you could see a few square parts to it. Naruto draws the Twilight Star and stabs the tree, and as he suspected it goes through with ease. He tears it down and opens up, allowing him to step inside.

Inside the 'tree' he spots someone sitting inside of a weird, mechanical contraption. Beside him is Konan. She stands in front of Nagato, knowing he's the one he's after. "Konan, stand down."

"But Nagato…" – Konan

"May I assume you're the real Pain?" Naruto asks Nagato, recognizing the chakra he tracked earlier coming from him. At this point Dragonforce has worn off and he's using Sage Mode instead.

As Naruto stares at Pain, his mind quickly goes to Jiraiya, Kakashi, and Samui, as well as all the people he knows who have died by his hands. The more he thinks about it, the more the darkness in his heart rises. "Do you hate me," Nagato brings Naruto out of his thoughts, "Now that you're facing the object of your vendetta, do you feel the need to enact revenge?"

Naruto continues to remain quiet, even lowering his head as he listens to him. Konan even adds, "Killing Nagato and getting your revenge isn't going to change the world. The only thing you'll get is personal satisfaction."

"Someone who can never give a proper answer can do nothing. All you can do is die for the peace I shall construct." – Nagato

Finally, after listening to him at that last sentence, Naruto states, "Maybe you should take your own advice… Me dying is never going to bring peace to this world, no matter what you plan."

Nagato fires one of his black weapons towards Naruto. He makes no movement nor does he even acknowledge the pain he receives when it stabs into his body and blood drips down below him. "From this close a distance I can completely manipulate your every move with my chakra. Don't worry. I avoided a vital spot. You are after all, a precious Jinchuuriki."

Naruto raises his head and glares at him. He is revealed to be in Sage Mode, but has combined his power with the fox's chakra. This completely negates Nagato's chakra. 'He let me hit him!'

"Nagato, what's wrong?" – Konan

"I came here to talk to you. But I also wanted to check some stuff out…" Naruto begins, as he pulls out the chakra receiver in his abdomen. "I wanted to see how I would actually feel when I looked at the object of my vendetta in the face, and what I would do. I didn't even know, myself…"

"Heh… And?" – Nagato

Naruto pulls it out completely, and drops it beside him. "I really can't forgive you… just looking at you makes me so mad I'm shaking! I can never get over this!"

'No! He fought off Nagato's chakra at such close range!' – Konan

Naruto lifts up the Twilight Star, flipping it upside down. He then rears it back and throws it forward. Konan stands in front Nagato to protect him, but to her misjudgment it passes her by and strikes the back part of Nagato's walker machine.

"Ero-sennin said he truly believed in the day when people would come to understand each other and live in harmony… He was telling me, but I was only half listening. He said he would pass his quest onto me, but all I cared about was being a worthy disciple and fighting bad guys… Now I finally understand what he was getting at; things are never that simple."

"Regardless, that shouldn't change the fact that you hate me. After all, you can't just show love to someone who has caused you so much pain so easily."

"I know."

"Jiraiya-sensei's words reflected the heart of a romantic, a idealistic philosopher. Reality is much more different," Explains the Pain master. He sighs and continues with, "You were the one who said you would defeat me, and bring peace to this world. Do you mean you will defeat me and then bring peace to the world, or would you just defeat me to bring peace? Because the latter would only show you want to exact your own personal revenge. But then again, you're not a warrior sent by god.

"Now that you see reality, can you still believe in those ridiculous words of our master?"

Naruto blinks, and his special energies disappear. "When I threw my sword at you I had no intention of missing you, but something made me stop. Something kept me from killing you. That was a sign of me to give you a chance; when I had found out that you all had been the perverted old man's apprentices, I was a little curious about something. How is it that you guys, who used to be his students, turn into people like this?

"I wish to hear your story, and learn about you, and then I shall give my final response."

"…" Nagato pauses for a moment, looking into the eyes of this blond dragon slayer. He could see that he truly means those words. "Very well. I shall tell you about pain."

"Nagato, that's just a waste of time! He's just a selfish teenager! Why don't we just…"

"Wait, Konan." Nagato says, interrupting his female friend. "I want to hear his response."

Konan goes silent, and turns away as Nagato begins. Naruto leans back and sits on his saucer.

The story begins with Nagato explaining he had experienced two great pains. The first pain came from the death of his parents. During the last war between the great nations, his home of Amegakure was turned into a battlefield. Konoha Shinobi killed his parents accidentally. That incident gave birth to the Rinnegan, and Nagato killed the two Shinobi responsible. After burying his parents he begins to search for a place to live. In a world that always rains, he couldn't find any place to stay. He even had to take care of a dog. On the brink of death, a ray of hope shone upon him, as he met Konan and her friend Yahiko.

A while later the war orphans found Jiraiya, Tsunade and Orochimaru fighting against the leader of Amegakure, Hanzo. After their battle, Yahiko approached them to ask for training in ninjutsu. Jiraiya took him up on that offer, as reparations for what they did to their home village. After he discovered Nagato's Rinnegan when he saves Konan and Yahiko from a bandit, Jiraiya started training them seriously, believing Nagato would be the one who could change the world. His powers even inspired him to write his first book, Tales of a Gutsy Ninja. Soon it came time for him to leave, and in his absence Yahiko, Nagato and Konan started gathering comrades and begin to construct peace, albeit based on military might. With the war between Konoha, Suna and Iwa going on, no one had time to really pay attention.

That's when Hanzo discovered rumors of their organization and proposed to make them a nexus in an effort to launch peace negotiations between the three great nations. Unfortunately, that was their biggest mistake. The next day, Hanzo and Danzo appeared before them with Konoha Black Ops and other subordinates. Danzo allied with Hanzo to take control of the seat of Hokage, while the latter just wanted to protect his authority. The Salamander got some thought into his head thinking that they would take control of Ame from him. In that moment, with Konan taken hostage, Nagato was ordered to kill Yahiko. Instead, the blond leader killed himself with Nagato's knife, bringing about the second great pain. With that Nagato went nuts, and summoned the Gedo statue to save him and Konan.

With Yahiko's death Nagato took over the organization, and eventually became what he is today.

"Since that day, many of our other comrades died in battle, many, many others… They all kept dying." Nagato laments. "The small commissions they pay to Konoha become war funds, and despite knowing that the citizens of the Land of Fire still falsely proclaim peace. The peace you large nations enjoy only exists atop the sacrifices of us small nations. This shows that just by living, humans hurt others without even realizing it. So long as humanity exists, hatred always will exist. True peace can never exist, not in this cursed world, and everything our master said was just wishful thinking.

"I've told you our story, so let's hear your response."

Without answering, Naruto digs his left hand into his pocket, and pulls out a book. A memory flashes into Naruto's mind.

_Flashback…_

_Naruto stares down at his plate; rice balls and tofu with yakiniku. For some reason, the grilled meat has been grilled a little too much, the tofu is burnt, and the rice balls look a little dry. Naruto takes some chopsticks and tries the tofu, but it breaks apart._

_"It has been a while since Manabu last cooked… I was so careless!" Naruto groans, falling out of his chair._

_"It's that bad, huh?" Manabu asks, dumping his food inside the trash. "I guess you'll have to cook this time."_

_"Yeah. It'll be just like old times." Naruto says with a sigh. To live with Manabu is a huge challenge. He's a good person, but he can't make a meal out of anything. So in order to stays alive, Naruto had to learn how to cook himself. Surprisingly, his first meal was much better than Manabu's._

_As he leans up, Naruto notices something standing up in Manabu's pocket. "What's that?"_

_"It's just a book. When I had first read it, I thought it was an inspiration in all I do." Manabu says to him. He draws the book from his pockets and shows it to him. The words read 'Tales of a Gutsy Ninja'._

_"That's a rather lame title. Who wrote it?" Naruto asks, receiving the book from Manabu. He opens the page and finds Jiraiya's face published inside. "Ero-Sennin?"_

_"This is his first book, way before he decided to do porn." Manabu informs him._

_"I see…" Naruto opens the book and begins reading it, leaving the building to head outside by the trees._

_At the end of the book, Naruto begins to cry. This book of Jiraiya's has touched the blond's heart. 'Ero-Sennin…'_

_End Flashback…_

"You may be right. I kind of think the same way as you." Naruto finally says, standing up off his saucer.

"I see…" – Nagato

"I get where you're coming from now. Even so, I still can't forgive you. The fact of the matter is you killed Ero-Sennin, and I still hate you for that." He says, gritting his teeth in anger.

"Then I assume you'll want to settle things…"

"They've already been settled." Naruto holds his hand out and shoots electricity at Nagato, but misses intentionally and hits his sword. He then pulls it out, and sheathes it away. "As much as I hate you, killing out of hate isn't how I settle things. That's not how I am."

'What's he saying?' – Konan

"Ero-Sennin believed in me. He left me his quest. So instead of taking my rage out on you, I will believe in Ero-Sennin's words and belief. That is my answer. And that's why, I will not kill you." Naruto concludes.

Silence fills the paper tree. Nagato and Konan both look at the dragon slayer questionably. Finally, Nagato says, "You want to believe in Jiraiya-sensei's belief… That is your response…"

"Yes."

"So let me get this straight; you're asking me, us, to just believe in you and simply wait around for peace?" Nagato asks, his voice rising a bit.

"…"

"No! I won't! How can I believe his words after all this? As long as we live in this cursed world, there will be no such thing as true peace!" Nagato answers him.

"If that's the case then I'll break this curse. If there is such a thing as peace, I'll find it! I don't give up so easily!" Naruto says, presenting a clear minded response and expression.

Nagato looks down at Naruto, shocked at the choice of words he used. "You… Those words…"

Konan, being the only one left out, asks, "Nagato, what's wrong?"

"Those words I said, and the ones you just said, all are in this book. This is the first novel Ero-Sennin wrote. He was truly trying to change the world with this." Naruto says. He opens the pages to show Jiraiya's picture, and some words he wrote underneath. "In the back of the book, he wrote about a disciple of his that helped provide him with inspiration, Nagato, and the name of the book's protagonist is Naruto."

Nagato remains stunned at this information. "This is…"

"My name isn't just some word that came to my parents mind while they were eating noodles! It's a precious heirloom from Ero-Sennin! I just can't give up and sully my master's gift! I will become the Hokage! I will bring peace to the world, including Amegakure! So please! Believe in me!"

Nagato continues to stay silent, thinking intently.

'"_You are the savior of this world. I know you can do it."' – Yahiko_

'"_What's even more important than any methods themselves is having faith and believing in them!"' – Nagato_

'"_I will believe in Ero-Sennin's words and belief!"' – Naruto_

The last two images to appear in his mind are the good times he had with his parents, and his new family including Jiraiya. Finally, Nagato bows his head and says, "We are fellow disciples of Jiraiya, students of the same teacher, and yet you and I can't understand each other. When I said it I meant it as a joke… You're an interesting kid. You remind of myself as one."

"Nagato…" – Konan

"I wasn't able to keep believing in Jiraiya, or even… in myself…" Nagato pulls his arms up, drawing them out from their ports. "But you gave me a vision of a future, one that shows a different path from the one I took. I think I shall do what you wished. I will believe in you, Uzumaki Naruto."

"What are you doing?"

Nagato forms the Ram and Snake seals and speaks, "Gedo Rinne Tensei no Jutsu!"

"Nagato! What are you doing?" Konan shouts, turning to her only friend left in the world.

"It's alright, Konan. I made a new choice."

"What's he doing?" Naruto asks her.

Konan looks down with a sad expression, and answers, "Those who possess the Rinnegan can perform all of the jutsu the Six Pains used, and are said to exist outside this world of life and death. Nagato's ocular power itself is a jutsu that presides over life and death. He is the seventh realm, Gedo."

"Then… What will he do?" Naruto asks one last time.

'If he performs that jutsu at his current chakra level he'll die. Nagato… you really want to help him this badly…' Konan turns to the blond dragon slayer. 'How could this kid change Nagato so much?'

Back in Konoha, the statue that the Naraku Realm uses to revive the other pains rises up from the ground. It extends its mouth and shoots out several streaks of light throughout the village. Each light soars through the air until it hits a deceased person.

Fukasaku is hit, and he suddenly wakes up. "Huh? Ma, where?"

"Pa!" Shima rushes over to the frog and hugs him dearly.

'That's impossible! I know Fukasaku-sama was dead! But how…' Sakura soon begins to notice that something is up, as everyone hit by the light has started to revive. Among those survivors are Kakashi and Shizune.

Even Shikamaru is at a loss for words. 'What's happening?'

Out in the distance Shikaku, Inoichi and their Hyuga friend all see the phenomenon happening. While the Yamanaka member is shocked, Shikaku claims, "It seems Naruto has settled things."

As Nagato continues reviving the people he killed, his hair begins to turn white. Naruto eventually asks again, "What's he doing?"

"Naruto-kun," Katsuya says, slithering out from the neck of his jumpsuit. "The villages are all coming back to life."

"Huh? You mean?" Naruto turns to Nagato in surprise.

Nagato explains, "This is the least I can do for you. Even though I can't revive Jiraiya-sensei, I can still bring back those I killed when I got here."

Nagato finally finishes the last one, and blood begins to drip from his lips. "War inflicts death, injury, and pain to both sides. The more precious someone is to you, the harder it is to accept that they might die. You even convince yourself there's no way they can. It's even worse for you generation who has never known war. You even try to find meaning in death, but find nothing but unbearable hatred and pain.

"Those are the things you will face in the coming days, Naruto. With regard to that book, and to you, I feel as if someone set this all up. Or perhaps this was all preordained by an actual god."

The paper tree begins to scatter into slips, fluttering into the wind. Nagato leaves this world with these last words. "It seems this is it for me. Naruto, I believe you of all people can bring peace to this world."

Minutes Later Right Outside of Konoha…

"Amazing. He actually won." Rouki remarks, walking past the border entering Konoha. He holds in his hand a small orb that flashes. He grins and says, "Well, if he were defeated by just that, then he would never have been interesting in the first place."

Naruto continues to walk back to Konoha. Along the way he begins to succumb to fatigue. 'I guess I need to take a nap…'

"I gotcha." Kakashi grabs hold of Naruto and lifts the boy over his shoulder.

"Kakashi-sensei!"

"You did great, Naruto." The Copy Ninja says to him. He begins to walk him towards Konoha.

Before they could reach the village, Rouki appears before them, walking out from behind a tree. Naruto gasps in shock when he sees him. "You…"

"It seems I'm real terrible at setting up duels," Complains the black wolf. He then laughs and states, "I was going to challenge you before you got back from training, but then Pain showed up. And then I could have faced you now, but I can see you're tired."

"If you know that, then beat it! I don't have time to deal with you!" Naruto tells the monster.

"Although, you can always use Antimatter Sword to restore your strength." Rouki comments.

"Naruto, who is he?"

"That guy wants to fight me just for the hell of it. He was also fighting against Pain just to kill me himself." Naruto explains. Kakashi rests the tired hero by a tree.

"I don't care what reason you may want for fighting Naruto. I won't allow it!" Kakashi charges at Rouki, prepared to fight the wolf himself.

Suddenly, the Renchuu appear behind Rouki. They each brandish a blade and snarl at Naruto and Kakashi. 'It's those creatures again.'

"Why must interferences appear?" Rouki groans. As the Renchuu head towards Naruto, he charges at them and cuts the creatures down. Kakashi watches in shock at Rouki's attitude.

He finishes them off with Crescent Wave, and then sheathes his sword. "Mizuki, what are you doing here?"

Out from behind, a man in black and silver armor walks out from the shadows. He has the appearance of a jackal and the eyes of a wild animal. "Who cares what you think? I want him dead; that's all we're together for!"

"That's right." Fading into existence appears Magellan, Sheji, and Hakurei.

"It's you!" Naruto shouts, pointing at Magellan.

"I was really surprised when I saw Pain defeated. Oh well. We'll just have to get rid of you later on." Hakurei says.

"Who are you guys? What are you after?" Naruto shouts, his anger finally getting the better of him.

"I guess we might as well introduce ourselves." Magellan begins as he glares at both Kakashi and Naruto. Mizuki, Rouki, the cloaked man Hakurei, and Sheji all stand beside one another.

"The immortal king of skulls who resides over the dead; Gomajuu no Buzai!" Hakurei says, his cloak blowing in the breeze. A cold wind overshadows everyone as his beaming red eyes glare at Naruto, sending a shiver running down his spine. "Skelgar-Zoku no Hakurei!"

"The sands of time rain through the life of this demon master; Gomajuu no Buzai!" Mizuki begins, slashing the air rapidly before bowing down gracefully. "Anubis-Zoku no Mizuki!"

"Crushing the weak and feeble under a natural disaster; Gomajuu no Buzai!" Magellan performs a rather showy pose. When he stomps his big feet he releases a bit of an earthquake. "Bigfoot-zoku no Magellan!"

"I've been brought back to life by my master, and devour a thousand enemies as a reborn wolf; Gomajuu no Buzai!" Rouki stabs his sword up into the air, and then brings it down to his face. "Chimera-Zoku no Rouki!"

"The power of the earth pales to the power of space; Gomajuu no Buzai!" Sheji's pose is less showoff-ish than the others, for he just brings his hands together and forms a pyramid. "Basilisk-Zoku no Sheji!"

"Unfortunately, you don't need to know that, when you die in battle against me." Rouki tells him. He grabs hold of his mask and moves it, exposing Manabu's face and hair underneath. Naruto and Kakashi gasp in shock.

"Manabu!" Naruto yells, but Rouki simply places the mask back on, returning to his normal self. "Give Manabu back you bastard!"

"When a Chimera demon possesses a fresh soul, it takes its abilities and powers and makes them their own. The soul will dry up and die after 3 days, leaving an empty shell left." Naruto grits his teeth as Rouki talks to him. Rouki also holds up the sphere like item he had before. "We will have our long awaited duel at the Valley of The End tomorrow, alone. No one else will show up. If you don't come, or I find that someone has followed you there, I will not show, and I will just be content with your mentor's soul, and this young girl's."

The orb flashes, releasing an image of Samui. "Naruto!"

"Samui?" Naruto finds the energy in him to stand up, and prepares to run towards Rouki.

"Ika-Zoku; Ika Yaribusuma!" Rouki's head takes the shape of a black squid, and tentacles shoot out from behind him. They each jab Naruto at lightning fast speed, knocking him backwards. "I might not even be satisfied with just two. I believe 30 people might suffice for your terrible mistake."

"You… Are you threatening me? You stupid kamen rider?"

"I'm simply giving you a little something to think about. I await your arrival." Rouki reverts to normal and vanishes into the shadows of the forest.

"Interesting. We'll leave him to Rouki then." Hakurei says, vanishing as well.

"Huh? Why does he get to kill him?" Mizuki complains.

"Be quiet. Let's just let the wolf do what he wants. If he wins we all do. Besides, we're all illusions so we can't kill him personally." Magellan tells the Anubis. He then disappears along with the rest of them.

* * *

Kenshin: And there you have it; Naruto defeats Pain, Nagato revives Samui and Kakashi, and the real bad guys show themselves. It's going to be a real busy time for you, Naruto.

Yusei: Next time, Naruto has his bout with Rouki. Sasuke returns to Konoha and assaults two people. Also, Mei and Haku return to the scene.


	30. Wrapped In Black 1

_**Naruto and the Water Princess**_

Disclaimer: I do not need to tell you. I don't own Naruto, Fairy Tail, Dragonball, One Piece, Rave and Static Shock.

**_Chapter 30: Wrapped In Black 1 - Too Strong

* * *

_**

Naruto and Kakashi head back to Konoha after their run in with those monsters trying to kill him. They come before a surprising sight; everyone in Konoha has come to greet the blond back.

"Welcome back!"

"You're a hero, Naruto!"

"Thank You!" They all cheered. Everyone in the village, or at least those involved in the battle, has come out to see him.

"They've all come to see you." Kakashi tells him, noticing the surprised look on his face. Naruto finally smiles as he looks ahead; this is just what he's been hoping to get ever since he was a child.

The boy manages to rise up from Kakashi's back and approach the crowd, which immediately surround him and praise the teen. Naruto feels excited as he receives praise from the others. Sakura walks up to him after a moment, gaining his attention.

"Why must you be so risky?" She shouts, slamming her first down on his skull. He falls to one knee grasping his head, and looks up to see her bending down to kiss his cheek and hug him. "Thank you…"

After a moment of watching the heartwarming moment go on the crowd grabs hold of Naruto and heaves him up into the air. In the background Zetsu watches in shock at what he sees from a tree. 'Whoa, didn't see that coming! Pain lost!'

'Let's go report back to Madara.' The other side of Zetsu says, heading inside the tree to report back. Not too long later he heads back to their leader and tells them of what happened. "And that's what happened. What now?"

After telling Madara and Kisame of what he saw, the masked villain is speechless. Kisame comments, "Eh? So Konan ain't returning, huh? Man, I liked working with a chick."

"We're going to need another pawn to synchronize with the statue. What are your orders?" White Zetsu asks the masked leader.

After his silent moment he says, "Kisame, go after the eight tails and correct Sasuke's mistake. I've got some effects to sort out."

Later that day, Konoha begins its reconstruction. With the help of Yamato and certain Jonin it seems to be an easy task, which it probably isn't. Naruto is inside a tent, where the Fifth Hokage rests. After expending her energy to protect the village she has aged rapidly to her real age and is now in a coma. With him are Kakashi, Shizune and Sakura, all looking down at the unconscious woman. The Hokage's assistant tells them, "Tsunade-sama… I don't know when you'll wake up."

"Tsunade…" Naruto walks out of the tent and heads to his house just by the forest of the village. Since it was out of range it didn't get hit by the Bansho Tennin. He walks inside and searches the building for Samui, finding her body resting in her room. "Samui… Nothing seems to change at all."

"Naruto, what's wrong?" Hinata asks, having followed him home. She sees the unconscious woman before her gazed upon by the blond. Naruto sighs and leans down by her bedside. "You're worried about Samui, aren't you?"

"I know who took her." Naruto tells her, taking her by surprised. He lifts his head up and tells her, "A guy named Rouki has captured her soul, and Manabu's," Hinata tenses up as he tells him that, "The only way I can save them is by accepting his challenge at the Valley of the End."

"Naruto..." Hinata whispers as she looks at him.

"I want to go. I have to defeat him or else they'll be gone forever." Naruto says as he stands to his feet.

"You can't go alone!" Naruto turns around to see Sakura by the door. "We'll go with you!"

"Sakura," - Hinata

"Look, he said I had to be alone or else he won't show!" Naruto tells the pink haired girl.

"Then don't go! We can avoid fighting just like that!" Sakura reasons. She walks a little further into the room to face him. "Naruto, ninjas aren't prideful warriors who take jobs just to go into battles. Finishing our missions as fast as we can without being seen is the way of a ninja!"

"He said that not only will he kill Manabu and Samui, but he would also slay 10 to 20 people." Naruto replies.

"I see. So, it is hopeless then." Hinata adds.

"HOW? All we have to do is find him and take him out!" Sakura shouts.

"How do you know when he'll strike? He could attack another village and kill people while using my name! Do you know what that'll entail?" He asks her. She begins to shake a bit trying to think of a safer way to handle this situation.

"I know... But still... I don't want you putting your life on the line with so little hesitation! Don't you care what happens to you?" Sakura begins to get teary. Naruto holds the Twilight Star out to her, confusing her.

"If you really want to stop me, use this." Sakura pales when she realizes what he's implying. Naruto then says, "Why are you so overprotective of me? I'm a Sage now, and I was able to defeat Pain!"

"You also became the Kyubi again!" Sakura shouts at him. Naruto lowers his sword and looks into her eyes. "I spoke to Yamato-san. He told me you were on the verge of becoming the full monster! Not only that, but the seal is gone now! You won't be able to suppress its powers again!"

Naruto pauses for the moment, and turns around saying, "I'm going to save them, no matter what. If Manabu dies because I made a mistake then I'll be better off dead."

"Naruto..."

"Let him go." Hinata says. Both of them turn to Hinata who has spoken up finally. "If Naruto is the only one who can do it, then let's believe in him."

"What are you saying, Hinata?" - Sakura

"Thank you." Naruto retires to his room finally. With the determination to save his precious people in his mind, he needs to keep as much of his strength as possible. Sakura can only look down in grief and despair, knowing that there is no hope of victory.

Elsewhere...

Rouki wanders through the forest, looking up above at the approaching darkness. Soon the moon will rise, and night will fall. It would only be a matter of time before he would meet with the dragon slayer in combat. But before that, he has a pest following him. "Who is that?"

"Rouki..." Magellan appears from behind a tree approaching the Chimera demon.

"Magellan, do you plan on staying behind me forever?" Rouki questions the Sasquatch demon.

"You're really going through with this? This plan of yours will fail!"

Rouki swings his sword and releases a wave of dark energy, one Magellan jumps to avoid. He then spouts, "That is not for you to say! Our lives being held by that damn lizard has gone on long enough! To think, all this is being done for some foolish water princess I've never heard of."

"Shut up! You really are a prideful fool!" Magellan shouts at him. "Do you know that he has already realized your plan?"

_Flashback Two Years Ago..._

_"IS THAT TRUE?" A man covered in darkness orders from Sheji. Electricity surges through his body._

_"Wait, wait, wait, wait! I was just a little curious about that boy Rouki was interested in so I did a little research!" Sheji explains to him in hopes of calming his rage. "It seems Rouki discovered who that boy was and placed him as his target."_

_"Oh?" Magellan appears from behind them walking with a smug frown on his face. "So, that's why he was so insistent on knowing your plans about him."_

_The angry man punches the ground with a hateful look on his face. "Inside, he was actually laughing at me... Like Mizuhime-chan and those dragon humans... THEY MADE A FOOL OUT OF ME!"_

_"Now, now calm down! We still have time to get rid of him! People like Rouki are still useful for situations like this." Magellan says in an effort to calm him down._

_"I would also advise against telling others about this boy's power. Other than Rouki, it might bring in a couple of strange characters." Sheji says, this time without making comments to chickens or stuff._

_The man begins to growl under his breath, before he grins creepily. "So that's what it is... Rouki thinks he's so clever... Fine. I'll play his little game."_

_"Game?"_

_"Whether he realizes it or not, he'll still be doing me a favor." The man sits down in a throne of stone, one he carved himself by hand. "I'll use him to get what I want. He doesn't realize the dangerous powers that lie within the Dragon-Zoku Demon Clan! Even a lowly half-breed can't live, all because of her."_

_"That water princess?" - Sheji_

_"Ah."  
_

_End Flashback..._

"And that's why you have to stop." Magellan warns Rouki.

"I can't. I can't be afraid of that foolish dragon anymore! Now that the dragon slayer has revealed his powers the time has come to steal his powers! We will soon be free of Long's rule!" Rouki tells him as he walks down the path. Magellan jumps in front of him, causing the ground to shake from his landing.

"You can't turn on Long-sama! You get on his bad side and he'll kill you!" Magellan warns the black wolf. Rouki simply scuffs and walks further.

"No one would miss me," are the last words he speaks before disappearing. The bigfoot sighs in depression and looks to the ground.

"You idiot. Why do you think we're friends?"

The Next Morning...

"I hope the village is okay. Those warnings Gai-sensei told us made me worried." Lee says to his comrades as they near the border to Konoha. Right now he and the rest of Team Gai are resting in a forest after rushing towards Konoha due to the letters they received from carrier hawks.

Tenten is standing by a lake washing her face. She fell into a log that had disgusting bugs underneath it, and after wards her face started to itch. Washing it has taken away most of the itching.

As she finishes up, she hears, "You gotta be kidding me!"

Tenten lifts her head up and looks up ahead at a tree branch. There he sees Sasuke Uchiha with Seiryu and Byakko, along with Madara and Zetsu. Seiryu then continues by asking, "Are you sure this Naruto person defeated Pain?"

'Pain? Who's Pain, and why would they...'

"Naruto has gotten stronger, much more than I had anticipated. It's come to a point where he may be even stronger than Sasuke now." Madara says as he glances at the young Uchiha.

"Eh?" Byakko squeals in shock.

Sasuke regardless remains silent, save for the small anger mark appearing on his head. "I don't care about stuff like that anymore. Our real problem now are the Gokage."

"So if Konoha is gone now, shouldn't we head for the summit where the five shadows will be gathering?" Seiryu questions the Uchiha.

"Danzo will definitely be there, but so will the other four so we'll have to be careful," States Sasuke as he begins to turn around. 'Especially if Naruto's scary fiance will be there.'

"I will leave you with Zetsu. He will help you reach the summit." As Madara speaks, the two faced ninja splits in half, the white and the black. "Have fun fighting him. Oh, and kill the eavesdropper."

With that, Madara disappears into nothing like always. Black Zetsu slips into the tree to follow after. Tenten gasps in a low voice when she realizes he found her out, and prepares to run away. Before she could reach her team though Sasuke manages to leap in front of her.

"Sasuke..." She whispers, looking at the boy in front of her. He really has changed. Byakko and Seiryu land behind her, having cornered the little girl.

"Tenten, it's been a long time." Sasuke lifts his hand up and summons Decalogue. It seems to hold a different shape, one that doesn't match any of the last 9 it had. It does resemble the original though. "You will be the first victim for the Uchiha's revenge."

"What are you talking about? Why did you leave Konoha? Wasn't it to kill your brother?" She asks the swordsninja.

"Things just aren't that simple." Sasuke says before he prepares to swing. He then slashes diagonally, intentionally missing her and releasing a shockwave of pure wind that cuts down a tree behind him. There someone leaps out of the way and lands not too far away from them. Sasuke then comments, "I seem to keep on running into annoyances all day, huh?"

"The only annoyance here is you, Uchiha." The man then stands up, revealing himself to be none other than Hao. He is wrapped tightly in his Reibi form with his sakabato in hand.

"Hao, you bastard, you're better off never coming before us again!" Byakko shouts at the villainous psychopath.

"Sasuke Uchiha, I will be taking my revenge on you for ruining my plan!" Hao extends his arm out at him. Sasuke first pushes Tenten out of the way and slams Explosion down at his hand, causing an explosion.

"Take her away from here; I will clean up this past of ours." Sasuke orders Seiryu and Byakko, who grab hold of the girl and run off. Hao retracts his arm and summons purple electricity around his body. The ooze on his body shift shapes axes surrounded by his energy. The Sharingan rolls in Sasuke's eyes as he glares at Hao with a smirk. "I'm sure you remember our last fight, right?"

"Oh yeah, I haven't. That's why I won't fail this time!" Each of the axes fly towards Sasuke, who prepares himself for battle. But as he glances ahead he notices his vision is still a little blurry.

'What's going on? I can't see!' This lapse in sight causes him to get cut once.

Elsewhere Outside of Konoha...

Naruto steps off of his saucer and stands on top of a statue. He looks ahead and sees Rouki standing on top of the second one. The blond swordsman glares at him, his eyes slowly showing signs of green. "I'm here, like you said."

Rouki turns around like a hard-boiled detective, chuckling as he looks at Naruto. "I knew you would come. You're so easy to manipulate."

After the sun rose up, Naruto made his move and flew towards the valley of the end as fast as he could. He did have time to say bye to Sakura and Hinata before he took off, but Sai managed to get in his way. So after a few seconds of trying to convince the spy, he had to shock him unconscious. And now here he is.

"I'm here, so let go of Samui and Manabu!" Naruto demands from the black wolf.

"You have to defeat me in order to save your friends. After all," Rouki removes his mask and shows him Manabu's face, enraging Naruto even more. His eyes turn completely green this time, but they aren't visible under his hitai-e's shadow. "I am borrowing this body."

Rouki places the mask back on, and holds up an orb. "This woman is also a bargaining chip, because you're a softhearted fool."

"No! At the very least let Samui go!" - Naruto

"I'm actually hungry right now." Rouki reaches into the orb and pulls out a white, pale misty figure. "I'll have to fill it with this blond woman."

As he prepares to bite down on the spirit, Naruto snaps. He jets at Rouki and slams his right fist into the monster's face. Actually, it wasn't even a punch; he scratched at him. His fingers become surrounded with swirling and sharp wind that turned his nails into claws. The attack actually cut off pieces of Rouki's mask, leaving a four claw mark that exposes some of the left side of his face.

Rouki spits up the spirit in the process, and loosens his grip on the orb. Naruto roars as he punches him with his left fist, which is covered in electricity, in the chest. Rouki falls into the lake below. Naruto glances ahead to see the orb that held Samui's soul has been tossed into the air. Naruto slices it in two with the Twilight Star, destroying it. Samui's spirit flies away towards Konoha.

Rouki slowly rises up to the surface, his hair and body dripping wet. Naruto lands on top of the water, his eyes having finally turned back to blue. He opens his mouth and fires Rairyu no Hoko. Rouki dives into the water just as it hits, but no screams of pain can be heard. He could only hear laughter as Rouki rises to the surface looking like a black jellyfish.

"Electricity cannot harm jellyfish demons. Ebi-Zoku," Rouki's one good eye glows as he morphs his body, turning into a giant lobster. His left claw rises up and grabs hold of Naruto's head. "Ebi-gatana Otoshi!"

Without a second to waste, the blond fries the black lobster. He then sinks into the sea after letting him go. Naruto holds onto his head, feeling himself bleed. He looks into the water to search for Rouki, which wasn't hard considering the bright sun could help him pick out his black figure. Suddenly the water under him begins to bubble up. So to avoid it Naruto runs along the water. As he does, his left foot kicks up electric shocks and the right bursts of wind.

Out from the water rises a large, black tentacle that wraps all around Naruto. More water rises up as Rouki can be seen as a form of kraken. "There's nothing you can do against me. I've absorbed the souls of 99 demon clans! You will easily become the last head on my wall."

Back to Sasuke...

"Bakuensaiga!" Sasuke swings down at Hao, but misses as he sidesteps him.

"What's wrong, Uchiha? You're moving slower than usual!" Hao taunts as he does a spinning heel kick to his head. He didn't do the actual spin and just turned so he would leave just a split second for Sasuke to dodge, which he couldn't.

Hao does another kick, but the Uchiha grabs it and lifts his sword up. "Bakuhatsu no Kenjutsu: Desperado Bomb!"

The result is a huge explosion that covers most of the forest. The explosion creates flames that catches the trees on fire. Elsewhere Tenten could see the flames Sasuke created as he leaps out of the flames. She cries out, "Sasuke!"

"Why does Sasuke want this girl to live? He hates Konoha, doesn't he?" Byakko asks the ice dragon.

"It would seem his heart isn't as black as we thought." Seiryu answers. As they run, Gai, Lee and Neji can be seen coming straight for them ahead. "More of her comrades?"

"Gai-sensei! Lee! Neji!" Tenten calls out. Byakko and Seiryu stop before the ninjas just as they do.

"Let her go now!" Lee commands of the two.

"Sure. She's out of our hair now." Byakko releases Tenten, allowing her to rejoin her friends. To her surprise though she heads back to the battlefield to where Sasuke is.

"Wait, Tenten!" Lee calls out.

"That woman is crazy! She's going to die if she goes to where Sasuke is!" Seiryu comments as he leaps at him.

"Sasuke?" Neji activates his Byakugan and looks further into the flames of the forest, and could see two figures fighting one another.

'So, he's here to?' Gai dashes forward, running past the others to the battlefield. Neji and Lee follow after their team leader.

Inside the flames Hao extends his ooze to grab hold of Sasuke, pulling him back into the flames he created. Sasuke crashes to the ground, and glares up at Hao. He lifts his sakabato up and prepares to slash him, until Sasuke glares at him with his Mangekyo Sharingan. Soon Hao becomes trapped within the Tsukiyomi, falling to the ground unconscious. The Uchiha sighs and reverts his eyes to normal. "Good. I thought I was in trouble there for a-"

"For a second?" Hao asks before he stabs at Sasuke. The reverse side of the sword cuts his shoulder, but leaves him with enough time to slide out of the way. Sasuke rolls over the ground, getting caught on a burning tree. He pulls off and removes his jacket since it got caught on fire. He glares at Hao, still surprised as to what just happened.

"You're wondering how I could pull through, huh? If one has a Biju inside of them they can manipulate their chakra stream to cancel out Genjutsu." Hao explains, grinning confidently under his Noh mask.

'Damn! The only thing left for me to do is use Amaterasu.' - Sasuke

"Sasuke!" Tenten calls out as she runs towards the battlefield. Gai moves past her and approaches Hao and Sasuke.

"Idiot! I told you to stay back!" Sasuke tells the the girl, completely ignoring Gai's presence. Sasuke glares at Hao and prepares Amaterasu, surrounding the Jinchuuriki in black flames.

Hao backs away and slides out of his ooze-like armor. From the pieces of his armor still on his back it regenerates, leaving the black ooze that was on fire to burn up. "I can regenerate my armor as much as I want. You won't be burning me."

'Damn! How does he know about my abilities?' - Sasuke

Back To Naruto...

"You can't beat me. You're too weak to do it alone..." Rouki taunts as he continues to put the squeeze on Naruto. Naruto wants to release electricity, but after Rouki pulled him underwater he couldn't do it without short circuiting himself.

Naruto wiggles his left hand free and transforms the Twilight Star into Kuroi Getsuga. Without the gravitational effects of water or the Earth on Naruto he quickly sinks to the ground. As such an accelerated rate Rouki loses his grip and he slips free.

"Jyuken Gattai; Ghost Slayer!" Naruto combines the powers of both Tenchi the Phantom Sword with Sakasa Ace the Antimatter Sword and swings, splitting the water like Moses did to the Red Sea. The black wolf floats in the air unable to move, since he cut towards him. Smirking, Naruto transforms his saucer and flies up towards Rouki with both arms crossed.

"Rairyu no Twin Hotengeki!" Naruto summons two lightning halberds and slashes at Rouki, making a cross cut. Rouki suffers the full force of the attack, and more of his mask begins to crack. The water closes in on Rouki, slamming him on both sides.

Naruto waits on the surface until Rouki comes up, which he does after dragging himself up to the feet of Senju Hashirama. Apparently his transformation wore out and now he's coughing up water and blood. He glares at Naruto and questions, "Are you sure you should be hurting me so much? You might end up killing your precious friend."

Naruto fires a round from Omega Arts at him, who dodges by rolling to the side. "If that were true you wouldn't have waited until now to tell me. Besides, when I slashed you earlier the wound on your mask didn't travel to his body, since that means all I need to do is attack the covered portion of your body!"

'He's clever. A little too clever. I'll have to finish this soon. The effects of his sword just now are starting to lift.' Rouki soon transforms, turning into a part wolf, part raven creature. He flaps his wings and takes flight, reaching Naruto's level. The bird-wolf then draws his black sword, glaring at Naruto with golden slit eyes.

Naruto moves upwards just as Rouki flies towards him. 'I've reached the point where the Jyuken Gattai can be used once every two minutes, so this should be enough.'

"What's the matter? Are you a dragon or a snake?" Rouki taunts as he chases after Naruto.

"We'll see." Naruto fires Tenryu no Hoko at the water, kicking up a shield of water that throws Rouki off. The blond then flies away at a good distance, holding his hands together to form Tenryu no Rasengan. "Tenryu no,"

"It's pointless!" Rouki charges forward surrounded by dark energy.

"Rasengan!" He shoves the attack forward, firing a hurricane of slicing wind that would split a boulder in half. But as it collides with Rouki he shows little signs of struggle. So, Naruto increases the output to push him back.

"Running out of steam, eh?" Rouki chuckles as he holds his sword up to block the wind attack.

"FULL POWER!" Naruto increases the wind attack to full strength. An extra burst of wind flies out of his hands and pushes Rouki back by a huge amount. But even with this increase, the black wolf grins.

'How can such a fool have access to such powers? It's like giving a ladybug a katana!' The black sword turns into Tenchi and cuts through the wind. Rouki then raises the darkness around him and shoots it off further at the wind. With Naruto now focusing on his darkness, the wolf slides out of the way and flies full speed at Naruto.

"What?" Naruto quickly stops his attack and moves out of the way to keep his focus on Rouki.

"Alchemist Wave!" Rouki swings at Naruto, releasing a crescent wave that strikes him point blank. The attack also conjures up an explosion, one that knocks Naruto off his saucer and hurtling into the leg of Madara. The Twilight Star falls into the sea just as Naruto falls to the ground. He rolls over to the sea before Rouki lands before him. "You can't escape."

Naruto dives deeper into the sea to grab his sword, occasionally clutching his ribcage in pain. He then begins to come up with a plan, even with Rouki submerging as a large black kraken. Naruto lets a bit of air slip through his mouth, releasing some blood as well. He then performs a series of handseals before bubbling, "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

The blood he released transforms, summoning a giant whirlpool that rises to the surface. It then transforms, turning into a lizard-like creature. It has green scales, a salamander jaw, two bulky arms, a fin going down his back, a tan underbelly, and red eyes. The summoned creature reaches into the sea and grabs Naruto, pulling him out of the water. "Hey Naruto."

"Suineki? What are you doing here? Where's Hydra?" Naruto asks the creature.

"Mom's still injured so I came instead." Suineki explains before he notices Rouki sending tentacles at him. Some wrap around his snake-like tail and begins to pull him down. Naruto begins to whisper in Suineki's ear. "That's your plan?"

"I can't take another one of his Crescent Wave things and I don't have an Sage Chakra! I need a little distraction!" Naruto tells his reptilian partner. "I'll feed you some good ramen afterwards."

"Ah." Suineki tosses Naruto in the air and dives after Rouki. He punches and grabs hold of his tentacles as much as he could. Naruto's saucer comes up from the water and Naruto lands on it. He then resumes his meditation position to gather Sage Chakra.

"I know what you're doing; stalling so he can enter Sage Mode." Rouki states as he wraps more tentacles around the reptile. "Having absorbed Manabu I know everything there is to know about that ability, and you won't be able to bring it out in time!"

"You don't know anything about Naruto. Even if you've absorbed someone who can use it you can't comprehend his powers." Suineki explains to the boy.

"What?" - Rouki

"Naruto has completely mastered Sage Mode. There's no way he would take long like before to transform." Suineki tells him before he puffs into smoke. Shocked, Rouki tries to look for him through it, feeling a little wary now that he can hear a violent wind above. His fears are realized when the smoke clears to reveal Naruto, along with what appears to be an extremely large Rasengan over his head.

"Senjutsu: Chou Oodama Rasengan!" Naruto slams the giant sphere down on Rouki, releasing control of it in the process. It continues to descend, pushing Rouki further into the sea. The water around it swirls violently in a similar manner of a whirlpool, until the sphere reaches the bottom and explodes. Water shoots up into the sky and rains back down. Naruto luckily flips himself upside down so he doesn't get caught in the rain. "Hey, I know you aren't dead down there!"

"Naruto!" Someone calls out above. Naruto looks up and sees Sakura above the waterfall with Hinata.

"What the? What are they doing here?" Naruto complains in shock. 'I didn't even notice them! My sense of smell was thrown off because I was so focused on this battle.'

He flies towards the girls and says, "Go back! The village needs you right now!"

"You expect to leave to fight against a monster without thinking we would come follow you?" Sakura yells at him.

"Naruto, if this is something you can do then only you can do it, but I have to be there for you in your time of need!" Hinata tells him. Her Byakugan catches something coming up behind Naruto. Acting quick she pushes him out of the way, and receives the full impact of a Crescent Wave. Hinata is blown backwards and falls unconscious, her forehead and left cheek bleeding.

"Hinata!" Naruto hops to solid ground and runs towards his beloved woman, seeing her unconscious form on the round. He lifts her up and sees the damage that attack did to her. "Hinata! Hinata! Please wake, Hinata!"

He receives no answer. Sakura takes the moment to head for Hinata and lays her down to heal the girl.

"Didn't I say to come alone? Can you even follow the orders of a hostage?" Rouki comments as he glares down at the boy. Naruto doesn't turn around, but if he did he would see how torn up Rouki is now. A scar has now appeared going down Manabu's left eye, eyebrow and stopping at his cheek. "But, I've run out of patience with you. I'll just absorb you now."

"Shut up."

"Huh? What's that?" Rouki questions.

"I SAID SHUT UP!" Naruto quickly turns around and slams his right fist at Rouki's face. He blocks with his sword, but it cracks from that single hit and is blown away. Rouki changes to a hawk form and takes flight, taking the time to look at Naruto. There he sees the boy has some weird form of golden energy around him.

"Naruto?" - Sakura

Rouki glances at Naruto's eyes and face and is shocked to find the changes; he sees scales on his cheeks and face, his eyes have turned green with box irises that have demon slits, and his hair seems more gold than the normal blond. His hair blows upward rapidly as he expels more energy. "What is this golden energy?"

Naruto rears his head back and roars to the sky, his energy expelling even wilder than before and his irises disappearing.

Back With Sasuke...

"You're finished!" Hao slashes at Sasuke, sending him back towards Tenten. He lands in her arms and cause her to fall back.

"Sasuke, stop! You're going to kill yourself at this rate!"She tells him.

"I don't need your help! I'm going to kill you later!" Sasuke tells her after spitting up some surprises Gai, Tenten, Lee and Neji. "I can't forgive any Konoha Shinobi for your government using my brother to kill my family and branding him a villain just so you can have peace!"

"What are you talking about?" She asks him.

"So, that's what it was... Oh well. It's not my problem anymore!" Hao releases a sword beam that travels passed Neji towards Sasuke and Tenten.

"Tenten, run!" Lee says to her. Gai rushes over to the two in hopes to save them. But it was too late; the beam hits and explodes. "TENTEN!"

"I couldn't use Rotation in time!" Neji curses.

"Take that, Uchiha! That's what you get for... Eh?" Hao backs away slowly as he sees a large shadow in the smoke of the explosion. The smoke lifts, and a tall aparition can be seen over Sasuke as he holds a knocked out Tenten in her arms. He tightens his grip on his sword and grumbles, "Damn. I didn't think he would awaken that so quickly."

"Hao, you have an impenetrable defense, right? Well, I have one too; Meet Susanoo." - Sasuke

* * *

Manabu: The poll will end in the next chapter, the one for Naruto's sword. Also, there's a new story coming up soon. It will talk about Naruto becoming Kamen Rider Shiki and meeting with his peers the Jinchuuriki.


	31. Wrapped In Black 2

_**Water Princess 31**_

Disclaimer: I do not own Naru... You know what, just look back at the last chapter.

Omake-

"Greetings, my fellow subordinates. It's time we begin our attack on Konoha!" Orochimaru says to his group of Sound Ninjas. "Once we kill that old bastard, we will..."

Suddenly, the sound of ringing can be heard throughout the cave they're in. Orochimaru digs into his pockets and pulls out his cellphone. "Hello?"

"Hey, I'm looking for a Ms. Hugginkiss, first name Amanda." A distorted voice on the other end asks.

"Alright, hold on... Amanda Hugginkiss!" Orochimaru calls out to his group. "I'm looking for Amanda Hugginkiss!" The group begin to snicker as they catch on. He then sighs, asking himself, "Oh, why can't I find Amanda Huggingkiss?"

"Maybe your standards are too high!" Someone states, and soon the entire group of sound ninjas laugh at his expense.

Eventually Orochimaru catches on, and angrily yells into the phone, "WAIT! IT'S YOU AGAIN, ISN'T IT?"

He hears laughter coming from the phone. On the other line Naruto and Sasuke can be seen hanging up a phone, laughing their asses off.

_**Chapter 31: Wrapped in Black 2; Two Black

* * *

**_

_Last Time, Naruto and Sasuke enter into matches against Rouki and Hao, respectively. By the end of the chapter, Naruto unlocks the full strength of Dragonforce by combining the Kyubi chakra and Sage Chakra with his bloodline, and Sasuke summons the third power of the Mangekyou Susanoo._

_"What is this golden energy?"_

_"Damn. I didn't think he would awaken that so quickly."_

_"I SAID SHUT UP!"_

_"Hao, you have an impenetrable defense, right? Well, I have one too; Meet Susanoo."_

"Even if you summon that thing, your chances are still low!" Hao sends his ooze-like axes at Sasuke, who has his monstrous guardian reach out to block them.

"Hao, you're better off letting go of the past and forgetting about revenge." Sasuke tells him, continuing the clutch Tenten in his arms. She blushes at the close contact.

"What's that?"

"Give it up! There's no point in doing something you can't do." He continues to lecture.

"You brat… WHERE DO YOU GET OFF LECTURING ME, YOU HYPOCRITE? YOU'RE JUST A CRYBABY WHO WANTS SOMEONE TO BLAME FOR THE DEATH OF YOUR BROTHER AND MOTHER!" Hao throws back at him. These words really hit Sasuke deep, because despite everything that's happened, Hao is right. Sasuke wants Konoha to suffer and make up for the pain they put him through by ordering his family's death while praising the Senju, starting with killing off the council that ordered such a demand. The only way he can do that is by murdering Hanzo and anyone else who was in on the order.

"You're right. Someone has to pay for the death of mom and Nii-san!" He states, calling for Susanoo to reach out at Hao. He jumps back and avoids the attack, leaving Sasuke to toss Tenten at Gai. "Take care of her!"

"Sasuke!" She calls out to him. Moka runs towards the Uchiha to try and cut him, but her crystal sword smashes from the impact of hitting Susanoo's armor ribs. The giant then flicks at her, knocking the poor girl into a tree.

With Naruto…

Naruto lunges at Rouki from uptop the waterfall. Rouki flies further away from him, but is shocked to see that the wind around him is being used to keep him elevated. He even manages to reach him, and punches the wolf in the face. His mask cracks even more, and dark fumes can be seen leaking through the seams. Rouki crashes into the grassy field, and leaves an imprint.

"This is impossible… I shouldn't be losing so easily! What's going on? What is this golden energy?" Rouki complains, his voice beginning to give. Bit of Manabu's voice can be heard inside. 'I have to place my mask on his face before I break.'

Naruto roars once again and flies towards Rouki. Up above storm clouds can be seen gathering, and a vicious wind is blowing. Sakura quickly takes note of it, and tries to carry Hinata to a safer spot. "Naruto can't control his powers. What's going on?"

Naruto reaches Rouki and pounds him in the face, sending him flying back. Thunder cracks throughout the skies. He disappears like a flash of lightning and comes behind him, kicking him into the sky. As Naruto flies towards him, Rouki draws his black sword and prepares a Crescent Wave.

"I think I know what happened… He's reached the final form of Dragonforce. That explains the golden energy and how feral he's acting." Rouki thinks out loud as he draws in more of his powers.

Naruto gathers wind around his right arm until a blade appears like a reverse handed sword on his wrist. Rouki fires his strongest Crescent Wave at Naruto, who blocks with his right hand. A few seconds pass before Naruto finally crushes the attack with his wind enhanced hand, and continues towards Rouki.

The chimera wolf grows hawk wings and goes in for a direct attack, but to his surprise Naruto broke off the top part with his left fist charged with electricity. In that instance Naruto gathers wind to his left foot and kicks Rouki, sending him back to where Sakura and Hinata are. He growls once more.

Rouki tries to stand up, having reached the limit of his control of Manabu's body. 'Maybe I shouldn't have messed with him. I never seem to learn my lesson of how powerful dragons are.'

He looks back and sees Sakura still there. He lunges at her and holds her captive, bringing his partially broken Crescent Moon Blade up to Sakura's neck. In the process she drops Hinata to the ground. Naruto lands before them and roars with saliva coming out his mouth. The dragon slayer charges at Rouki.

"Stop or she dies!" He commands of the dragon human. Naruto continues to charge, his wind blade still sharpened. Sakura's eyes widen in fear as her beloved man approaches. "Idiot! Don't you care about her?"

"NARUTO!" She screams.

Lightning strikes the ground around them as Naruto approaches Rouki and Sakura. The pink haired girl closes her eyes and cries as he reaches striking distance, knowing she can't reach him anymore. If she couldn't before when he was possessed, there's nothing she can do now.

"DO YOU WANT YOUR BELOVED TO DIE NARUTO?" Manabu's voice yells out through Rouki's lips. These words cause Naruto to cancel the wind around his arm and instead punch Rouki in the chest. He's knocked further back, and releases his grip on Sakura in the process.

Naruto then holds Sakura in his arms, who slowly opens her eyes. She looks up to see Naruto has regained his normal irises. He still has his golden hair, dragon scale skin and green pupils though. He says to her, "Sakura, I'm okay now."

"Naruto!" She cries out, hugging the man she dearly loves.

Naruto gives her a quick kiss and heads towards Rouki, leaving her blushing and shocked. As Rouki wobbly stands, Naruto gathers electricity around his left hand, forming a halberd. "Rairyu no Hotengeki!"

He stabs Rouki in the face, sending a million volts through his mask. Rouki cries out in pain as the mask begins to crack, until finally it shatters. The pieces of the mask begin to dissolve into black fumes as the main body falls to his knees. With his mentor now safe, Naruto's fierce heart calms. Dragonforce is canceled and the storm clouds disappear along with the strong wind. "Manabu!"

"I can't believe it," Says Rouki through Manabu, shocking Naruto. He lifts his head up and reveals his wolf eyes, continuing, "I was defeated by a human child. But it seems my hunch was right afterall; I found a monster I could never hunt."

"I'm not a monster! I'm Naruto Uzumaki, a shinobi of the Hidden Leaf Village, the future Hokage, and a proud dragon slayer!" He states proudly.

"You're nothing more than a monster wearing human flesh. There's no way a human can contain such power. It's like fighting against Daijinryuu." Rouki states, his eyes slowly disappearing. "You won, so I'll give back this body and some advice; Long is much stronger than myself or any of the other Gomajuu. He's a true dragon with the power of a god, just like you. If you ever want to stop this war for your life, defeat him or give up on the Water Princess."

"Water Princess? Who's that?" Naruto asks.

"See ya later. It's getting dark where I am." With that last line, Rouki's eyes completely leave Manabu. He is now free from the wolf's grasps.

"Manabu!" Naruto grabs his mentor and lifts him over his shoulder. He then feels his neck and pulse and sighs in relief. "Good, he's okay. Let's take him and Hinata back home."

"Uh," Mumbles the girl as she looks at her beloved man. Sakura then asks, "Naruto, when did you get red hair?"

Back to Sasuke…

Susanoo fires an arrow at Hao, who easily avoids it. He misses Sasuke rushing in to hit him with Desperado Bomb. That powerful explosion strips him clean of his armor, leaving the man exposed. The Uchiha then rushes in to get it a good clean cut before he manages to restore his armor. Hao swings his blade and trips Sasuke and leaps back.

"He's not the only one you're facing!" Gai shouts as he comes down from above Hao to stomp his face into the ground. Hao quickly recovers but gets hit by another one of Susanoo's arrows, exposing him once more. This gives Sasuke a chance to hit him with Bakuensaiga. This final blow destroys Hao's mask, and knocks him further away. He lands close by the fires of Amaterasu.

Suddenly, Sasuke grabs his head and begins to cry out in pain. Tenten tenses up and gasps when she sees Sasuke in pain. He removes his hands and sees blood, that resulting from the blood leaking from his eyes. Knowing this to be a sign, he cancels Susanoo and heaves Decalogue, switching to Silpharion to dash for him.

"Sasuke, wait!" – Gai

"Stop!" Moka stands before Hao with her arms spread out. "Please, spare Hao-sama!"

"Moka-san, get out of my way. He doesn't deserve any mercy." Sasuke tells her, heaving the Decalogue's main form over his shoulder.

"Please, he's my master. He's the only person in this world who gave me a purpose. I love him, that's why I can't let him die!" She cries out, not budging an inch even as Sasuke prepares himself. Sasuke turns off his Sharingan and looks at the girl with his true honest eyes. "Sasuke Uchiha, your black heart still has a polished form of light, right? Otherwise, you would not have saved that girl from Konoha.

"Even if you wanted her dead yourself, your goal is to get revenge on Konoha by destroying them. You could easily have used her as a shield or kept her as a gambling chip. There's no way you would spare her life if you were the hateful Uchiha you claimed to be." She continues, crystal tears coming down her eyes.

Sasuke tsks, and disperses his Decalogue. She's right as well; even if he did want to destroy Konoha, he can't hurt Tenten. Despite her pesky nature, she's the only woman who loved him and shared her pain. "Fine."

"Thank you, Sasuke." She says to him. She slowly turns around to her master, saying, "Hao-sama, let's go back and forget this revenge…"

Hao grabs hold of her shoulder and in that instance a shocked look appears on her face. Sasuke gains that same look. Blood drips to the ground from two different spots underneath them.

"SASUKE!" Tenten screams in surprise.

From afar she can see that Hao has forced his blade through Moka's chest into Sasuke's.

'Unthinkable... He gave up the one friend he had for revenge?' Moka's eyes turn lifeless as Hao pulls the blade out of her body. He then pushes her to the ground and charges at Sasuke, making a second slash at him. Sasuke falls to the ground and begins to roll away. He then sees that Hao's eyes have turned delirious and empty. 'Is this what I've become?'

Sasuke leaps back and avoids him. There he notices Hao has stepped on the black flames of Amaterasu. Hao cries out as the flames begin to rise up his body. The Uchiha continues to avoid his blade attacks, until the flames finally consume his body. Eventually Hao's body turns into black dust. Right before he does, the Reibi rises up from his body, covered in black fire too. Sasuke stays still as it reaches out for him, but it burns up into ash as well.

"There… That ends that." Sasuke says before he falls back, going unconscious.

"Sasuke!" Tenten runs towards the unconscious boy. As she does, someone appears out of thin air. She falls on her behind when the man appears. "Who, who are you?"

"I see now is right about time before his eyes go blind." The man says, who is now revealed to be Madara Uchiha.

"It's you! What are you doing here?" Seiryu questions as he runs towards him with Byakko.

"You knew this would happen, didn't you?" Byakko shouts at him.

Madara reaches out and grabs hold of Seiryu's fist. Within seconds he has him vanish away. Byakko mounts a kick to the face just as he absorbs Seiryu, knocking off his mask. But then he grabs hold of Byakko and sends her away too. "Still just weak humans…"

Madara reaches out for his mask and picks it up. That's when Gai, Lee, Tenten and Neji see his face. The team gasps in shock when they see Madara's face is that of a skeleton. "Well, I guess the secret's out."

"What the hell are you?" – Gai

"I am the Immortal King of Skulls who reigns over the dead. You'll get Sasuke back in a day, when I'm done with him." He says to them as he picks up the Uchiha. He then waves to them and vanishes into thin air.

"Sasuke!" Tenten cries out, reaching for her precious friend.

Later On In Konoha…

After the bout with Rouki, Naruto carries Manabu and Hinata back by himself, leaving Sakura to follow behind. As they reach Konoha Naruto tells Kakashi of what took place and returns to his home. Since no one else in the village knows about what he did, he returns home with ease after taking Hinata to the hospital. Sakura remains there to look after her recovery.

While on hs way Naruto stops by a mirror store and takes a good look at his new look; whatever his last transformation was, something must have transformed his hair into this. He still has his spikes, but his blond hair has changed to a pure red shade. It looks just like his mother, even though he has never seen her before, and Nagato's hair color. He doesn't find anything with his body wrong so he ignores it for now.

He enters his home and is instantly attacked by Samui. Of course, by attacked I mean she grabs him and hugs the guy in her enormous chest. "Naruto, I'm so glad you're okay."

"Samui, let go!" He manages to make out. Being mushed in her chest has cut off his air. She blushes out of embarrassment and lets him go, allowing Naruto to breath. He catches his breath and looks at Samui, a picture of perfect health. It's hard to believe earlier she was just moments away from death. He smiles, saying, "I'm glad you're safe."

"It's thanks to you. I'm amazed you went through so much trouble for me." Samui states with a downed look on her face. She turns away from Naruto, speaking, "I'll understand if you stop loving me soon."

"I can't stop loving you. I'm not like that." Naruto tells her, walking towards the woman.

"I may not have been in my body, but I remember everything that happened clearly; he was going to eat me, he lured you into a trap, and yet you still wanted to save me. You even asked for my life first. Instead of worrying about some slave, you should focus on the true love between..."

Naruto turns Samui around and kisses her with all the passion he can muster. She is shocked at first, but quickly closes her eyes and kisses him back. His tongue slips through and plays with hers, causing Samui to moan in pleasure.

They part shortly and stare into eachother's eyes. Naruto then says, "I will always stay with you, and Mei, and Sakura, and Hinata. I will never abandon you! What kind of monster do you think I am?"

"Naruto..." Samui begins to cry after hearing his words. She takes his hand and leads him to the couch, sitting down beside him.

"Samui, what are you doing?" He asks, not understanding where this is leading them to. The normally cold staring woman is now showing an innocent, bright red look on her face. She reaches behind and pulls down the zipper of her clothes, shocking Naruto into a blush. "Ah! What _are_ you doing?"

"Sorry, but I want to do this, with you." She speaks in a low, sultry voice. She continues until the dress allows her breasts to fall due to gravity. They were just about to be revealed, when the door opens up.

"Naruto!" Lee shouts as he enters the home. Shocked at the sudden way he just barged in, Naruto falls to the ground. Samui quickly zips her clothes up, embarrassed at the situation so much she's red as an apple.

"Lee? What are you doing here?" Naruto asks, still shocked with his sudden appearance.

"...Was I interrupting something?" - Lee

"No, not at all." Samui answers, turning away with her blush still present. Lee looks on with a naive expression.

"Anyway, what's up?" Naruto asks him.

"...We ran into Sasuke." This grabs his attention immediately, and brings Naruto to jump in front of him.

"Really? Where!" He asks. Lee looks down with a sigh.

"It's weird. When we met him all he said was getting revenge on Konoha, yet all he did was protect Tenten." Lee states, remembering that's exactly how he fought. "He was extremely protective of her."

Naruto begins to look to the side as he begins to think about what's happening. What has happened to Sasuke from when they last met to now? 'He said he wanted revenge against Itachi... Yet, now he wants to destroy Konoha...'

"Anyway, what's happened to Konoha?" He now asks, referring to the destruction of the village.

"Oh yeah." Naruto then proceeds to explaining what happened in Konoha. He includes what he was told by Sakura, everything he knows and did after returning, but leaves out his meeting with Pain and his talk with his father. Even if he tried to explain that, it would be hard to explain.

At the end Samui begins to stare at his hair as she finally realizes something, asking, "Naruto, when did you get red hair?"

Later That Evening...

Naruto is currently sleeping in his bed, completely tired from the events of the entire day. Unfortunately, he's having a little trouble sleeping. He eventually wakes up, staring up at the ceiling. His mind travels to his friend Sasuke, and what could be on his mind right now. "Sasuke... What are you doing right now?"

"Bleeding," Answers a second voice. Naruto quickly turns around in his bed, and spots Madara lying there beside him.

Without a second thought he does the only thing he could think of in a situation like this; he yells out at the top of his lungs and falls out of bed. Afterwards he picks himself up and glares at the man. "It's you, Madara!"

"Nice to see you too, boy." Madara stands up from the bed and walks to Naruto on the other side. Not hesitating, Naruto forms the Rasengan and shoves it at him. He goes through him though and blasts to the other side of his door. Naruto rolls and faces Madara on his hands and left knee. Madara walks through the rest of the door towards Naruto, asking, "How did you change Nagato and Konan's mind?"

"What are you doing here? Did you get tired of sending other people to do your dirty work," He spits at Madara.

"You will answer my question, now," He tells the boy as he walks closer to him.

"Naruto!" Sakura rushes towards Madara and tries to hit him with her Tsunade-style fists, but fails as he avoids them by just sidestepping her. Soon, Samui wakes up and joins the fight, holding her Odachi over her left shoulder.

"Rairyu no Kaminari Punch!" Naruto lunges at Madara and prepares to punch his lights out, but he passes through him. While inside of him, Madara turns around so that he could face him. But the moment Naruto leaves Madara's body, a blade comes into contact with his face. That causes an explosion, one strong enough to knock Madara into a wall. His mask falls off in the process.

Naruto gasps when he looks up to see that his mentor Manabu is up, wielding the Twilight Star's Gilgamesh form. The dragon slayer then shouts, "Manabu!"

"As I thought, you're Hakurei." Manabu says as he looks at Madara, seeing the skeletal face he now sports.

The red eyed skeleton reaches out and grabs his mask, placing it back on. "So you found out. Impressive. Did Rouki tell you?"

"Iya. When Rouki had absorbed me, I learned everything he did before he was killed, and then I received his memories in the process." Manabu explains to Hakurei. "Naruto, are you okay?"

"You should ask yourself that! Are you really okay?" He asks his mentor.

"Ah. Even if I was injured there's no way I could just sit by while you're in trouble." Manabu then glares at Hakurei, facing his Twilight Star at him. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to see the boy who defeated Rouki, and is wanted by Rio." Hakurei states, turning around to glare at the red haired dragon slayer. "Naruto Uzumaki, the boy who changed Pain's mind, is too much of a threat to his plan and mine, especially because of that water princess."

"There it is again, Water Princess." - Naruto

"In this situation I wouldn't stand a chance against you. At this point we'll have to initiate war." Hakurei adds, causing Sakura, Samui and Manabu to gasp in shock. Naruto just glares angrily. "It's even worse when I'm starting to lose control over Sasuke."

"Where's Sasuke? Tell me!" Naruto orders, pointing at the skeleton.

"He's with me. After finding out that his brother betrayed his clan just for peace in Konoha," These words shock the girls and Naruto. It's at this point that he remembers what Itachi told him. Hakurei then continues with, "He couldn't live with that fact in his mind. He couldn't go back to Konoha and protect them; because Itachi believed Sasuke was the most important thing to him, so is he to him. That's a truly messed up family, eh?"

"You're lying!" - Naruto

"I'll be dropping him off tomorrow morning. When he sees you, you'll wish you had killed him." Hakurei tells them before he turns away from Manabu. "All he cares about is vengence against Konoha, for Itachi and his family. He doesn't care about you or your friends."

And just like tht, he disappears from everyone's vision like always. "I will enjoy seeing which will win, the hatefilled Uchiha, or the Senju representative."

"Wait!" Naruto charges in to stop him, but he's already gone.

"He's gone. Let it go for now, Naruto," Manabu says to the blond dragon slayer.

"I can't let it go! That guy's trying to control Sasuke!" - Naruto

"Hakurei may be right about Sasuke, but he doesn't know about the feelings in a man's heart. All we can do now is trust him and keep our guard up." Manabu says as he places his sword on his back. He walks towards the steps prepared to head out the door. "I'll tell Tsunade-sama about this."

"Wait, you can't!" Sakura speaks up, running up to stop him.

Manabu pauses in his tracks and turns to her. "What?"

"Tsunade-shisou is still in her coma. Right now, Danzo has taken her place." She tells him. He looks at Sakura in surprise, as if he saw an alien juggling flaming sticks.

"Really... I hadn't figured something like that would happen." Manabu says as he muses over this new info. 'Danzo, huh? This isn't good.'

Samui pulls on Naruto's arm, taking him to her room. "Come sleep with me tonight, Naruto. I can look after you better."

"Hey, let go of him!" Sakura yells, pulling on his other arm.

Manabu facepalms himself as he watches Naruto letting this happen.

* * *

Kenshin: And that ends this chapter. Next time, Naruto meets with Sasuke, and their final batte begins. Manabu also tells him what he knows from Rouki's memories.


	32. The Sort of Rival Battle

_**Water Princess 31**_

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Rave, Fairy Tail, Static, DBZ, or that other thing.

_**Chapter 32: The Sort of Rival Battle  


* * *

**_

Someplace Unknown...

"I've finally got it!" A blond ninja shouts. He turns to the left to grab a three pronged kunai and wrap a seal around it. He does this for four other kunai of similar design.

"What is it?" A female voice asks. As the woman comes into the light, it is revealed that she is Ayame.

"I've finally gotten the right design for the Hiraishin Mark 4! This time one kunai can open up a portal to another dimension by choice, instead of randomly sending me to someplace I don't know. It worked when I used Mark 3 against Madara, so this should be a much better improvement." The blond says, who is now revealed to be Naruto. Although to be precise, this Naruto is the Kazama who fight against the gator dragon in the dragon slayer Naruto's world, the black one.

"I don't know if that's a good idea." - Ayame

"That's what you said about not telling me your secret, and now we're closer than ever." Naruto says as he injects chakra into the kunai.

"You do realize we had to deal with all kinds of trouble for things to go back to normal, right?" - Ayame

Naruto chuckles. "Don't be paranoid. Now, watch the magic! Hiraishin, transport Naruto!"

He turns to his left to throw the kunai, but accidentally hits Ayame in the cheek with his elbow. He loses control of the kunai and it lands next to the others. "Oh my god! I'm so sorry!"

Naruto bends down to help his second wife up. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Watch where you swing you idiot!" She scolds, neither of them noticing a weird black and yellow lined form, like data, releasing from the main kunai to the others. Suddenly, each of them turn into bright spears of light and vanish.

"I guess... Hey, where did they go?" Naruto finally realizes that the kunai have vanished. Suddenly one appears out of thin air and flies towards him. Naruto draws his black katana and deflects it, having it hit the table. "Well, there's one."

A second kunai comes up from behind him and stabs him in the butt. "Ita," The moment the kunai enters his body he vanishes in a flash of yellow light.

"Naruto!" Ayame calls out.

Back In Dragon Slayer Naruto's World...

Three days have passed since that incident including Pain. Konoha is still in process of healing, the Hokage is still Danzo, and Naruto is just waking up from bed. He rises up from the bed and stretches his arms out, yawning in the process. Taking a glance at the clock by his bed he sees it's already 10. Paling he says, "Ah crap," and gets up out of bed. On his way out of bed he notices his clothes have been neatly placed on the bed; this time today it's his blue, yellow and black outfit.

After getting dressed he rushes down the steps with his saucer and Twilight Star, running past Samui who is cleaning a used pan. "Good morning, Naruto."

"Morning!" He shouts on his way out the door. Standing on his saucer he flies off to the hospital. 'That damn Hakurei disturbed my sleep last night!'

He makes it to the hospital and lands by the front door. Running inside Naruto approaches the counter and asks the lady, "Is Hinata Hyuga still in?"

"Hold on..." The lady checks the list of patients and on the list in katakana is Hinata's name. "Yes. She's in room 12."

"Thanks!" Naruto rushes down the hall towards her room, running past the numbers until he reaches 12. He stops when he spots Manabu standing in front of her room door. "Manabu?"

"Morning. I figured you would come here. I've learned some other things from Rouki's memories that I feel I should tell you." He tells Naruto as he opens the door. The two of them enter inside, and see Hinata is still inside fast asleep. Manabu leans near the window while Naruto sits next to Hinata.

"Hinata..." Naruto whispers in a worrying tone. She's sleeping peacefully now, but she wouldn't be in this situation if it weren't for his carelessness. Naruto then turns to Manabu and asks, "So, what was it you wanted to tell me?"

"Well, it's about your enemies. It's also about your bloodline limit, and why you become stronger the more you become angry." Manabu begins, preparing himself to tell Naruto this large amount of information. "As I've mentioned before, Metsuryu Mado is something you've gained from your mother; it's a power originating from dragons and used to slay them."

"Yeah, I got that." Naruto states.

"What I didn't say was that you gained this power because your family is directly descended from dragons." - Manabu

"Huh?"

"Your power is indeed something only a true dragon descendant can own because your blood is half human, half dragon. When you were born, your blood was only 10 percent dragon, but by being exposed to your element of lightning it converted 40 percent of your human blood into dragon blood," Explains the dark haired swordsman. He then looks to the window and continues with, "There are two ways of increasing the power of your dragon strength; Dragonforce and Heaven Dragon's Roar. Heaven dragon is a technique that allows the using to remove their humanity completely from their bloodstreams, becoming nothing more than monstrous beasts that exist simply to fulfill their natural instinct of battle; that fight loving pride dragons have consumes them and forces them to become more like dragons, by eating humans. When that happens they lose their sanity and slowly mutate into demons.

"Silver energy will rise up from their body's to mark their descent from grace. Dragonforce does the same, but it leaves their human hearts buried deep inside. With their hearts still intact they can become stronger. This leads to the true Dragonforce, JoutenRyu no Hado."

"Hado?" - Naruto

"This power you've obtained, that golden energy you've unlocked, is proof that you've surpassed your limitations. You have surpassed the limitations of dragon slayers, a race of half demons that have surpassed dragons."

"I have, surpassed dragons? That can't be right! Why would I be stronger than dragons already?" Naruto asks in shock. He doesn't mind, infact he's overwhelmed with joy inside at being so strong, but something doesn't add up to him.

"Dragons have amazing potential inside of them. But they can hardly ever become the best they can be because of their hearts; dragons, a group of battle loving machines, can never reach their full potential because they suppress their emotions. But dragon slayers, humans with dragon powers, can unlock their inner strength when their emotions run wild, because humans can't help but follow their emotions. All those fights you've had where your emotions get the better of you unlock powers stored up inside of you." Naruto continues to listen patiently as he hears his words. "Dragons are also aggressive, and that travels over to the slayers through Dragonforce and Heaven Dragon's Roar. It's especially risky for you because you're also a Jinchuuriki."

"Eh?" Naruto flinches in surprise to that.

"The Kyubi wants to take control of your body so it can have free will again, and it will do whatever it takes. It will even eat away at your emotions and make you a suitable container." He replies, answering his questionable 'eh'.

"That's why we're here." A feminine voice speaks. Naruto and Manabu look down to see Hinata has awoken mid conversation.

"Hinata! You're up!" Naruto says with joy.

"Naruto, you're doing too much. You need rest too." She tells him with a smile.

"I'm fine. It's not like I've done nothing but fight since I came back to Konoha..." Naruto tells her, looking at Manabu as if saying, 'Right'.

'You do seem a bit restless after she was put into the hospital...' Manabu surmises as he looks at the two. 'I need to become stronger as well, so as not to be a burden to him.'

The swordsninja leaves the room, allowing the two to spend privacy together. As he does he begins to remember his last few fights, against Hao, Zabuza and Kaizen, and Madara/Hakurei. Now that he thinks about it, he hasn't been able to win any of those battles. This fact leaves him depressed, to a point where he can only stop in the middle of the hallway and stay in deep thought. 'Have I done nothing but drag him down this whole time? He'll soon unlock his final sword, he surpasses me as a ninja, and he has the proper strength of a Hokage-level shinobi... Meanwhile, I can't use ninjutsu normally, I haven't mastered Sage Mode, and I can't go on missions ranked higher than C... Maybe this was all a waste of time; Naruto's been growing up without me.'

As he continues to feel sorry for himself, Manabu heads for the exits to leave. He removes his hitai-e from his waist and sighs, wondering if he should keep being a ninja. 'I should probably give up.'

Later That Afternoon...

The mailman comes walking by the abode of Naruto's home. Since the mailbox is outside of the detection system he's safe. After placing the resident's mail inside he walks away quickly, not wanting to get caught by any lingering animals that might try to get him.

Manabu is casually walking up to the front of the house after checking the garden, and sees the red flag up on the mailbox. 'Mail huh? It is Friday alright...' Manabu figures as he walks up to the mailbox and removes its contents.

Inside the house Naruto is with Sakura and Samui talking about Hinata's recovery. Sakura exclaims, "Wow, that's great! I'm glad Hinata will be out later today!"

"I was rather worried about her." Samui adds as she brushes Naruto's red hair.

"Yeah. You know, I hardly ever get to spend time with her. I can probably walk her home." He says as he thinks about the Hyuga girl he loves.

"Mail call!" Manabu calls out as he walks up to the trio. He separates the mail until a magazine comes out. He says, "For Sakura," and hands it to her.

"Wow! It's my subscription to Flower Beds Monthly!" She exclaims.

"For Samui," Manabu hands the blond a letter from the pile of mail that is much shorter now.

"It's from Karui and Omoi." She says as she holds the letter before her eyes. Naruto lifts his head and looks at her questionably. She shakes her head to reassure him of his worries. "If it's pertaining to ninja business then they would have written it in a scroll and sent it to the Hokage."

"I see." Manabu then hands Naruto his mail, a letter from Inari, Tazuna and Tsunami from Waves. "It's from Tsunami in Waves!"

"Ah! How are they?" Sakura asks, knowing that name all too well. Naruto opens the letter and reads it.

"It says Inari left to visit us in Konoha a few days ago. They should be here soon!" Naruto exclaims happily. He's glad to be able to see them again.

As they talk about nostalgia, Manabu sits in the living room couch, reading the sole letter that wasn't for them. It reads, "Dear Manabu, good to hear from you again. Victor and Kazuki are healed up and back in top form, but Ivir left some time ago. She must be still upset over hearing what happened to Yusei in your last letter. I'm coming to visit you too, mostly to see the boy you're training and to be with you. I hope you're doing well, Amelia," There's also a picture of Amelia; she's a red, long haired woman about Manabu's age with cerulean blue eyes and a light skin tone. Her outfit, or what can be seen, is a white sundress with a flower pattern adorning the bottom part and a straw hat over her head.

"Amelia..." Manabu whispers as he looks at the picture, a small blush forming on his face.

"So, it's from Ame-san?" Naruto asks him from directly behind him. Shocked at his sudden question, because he had no idea he was there, Manabu falls face forward to the picture floats down to the floor, until Naruto picks it up.

"What did I tell you about sneaking up on me?" Manabu grumbles as he snatches the picture away with an embarrassed blush on his face.

"I never thought you would be able to catch Manabu off guard. You always say he's always focused and clear minded." Sakura says as she enters the living room. "Come to think of it, I don't think I know much about Manabu."

Naruto smiles and nods at her words. "Well, Manabu likes to keep things to himself. He only told me certain parts of his past. I do know that his father is a scientist who paints named Kenshin. He discovered a way to reproduce energy without risks of pollution involving chakra, but it was sabotaged by Haou. His mother was Ester; he said she used to be a princess of an island that manufactures diamonds, but it sunk and she moved with Kenshin. His sister Resha has disappeared from his ever since he was young. Still, he tries to remain positive, despite the fact that his parents have both died."

"I see. He really did have a bad life." - Sakura

"Yeah. Luckily he has friends like Ame-san. His crush for her are the only things that can distract him." Naruto says in a taunting manner.

"It's not a crush." Manabu replies as he walks away. "She and I are just friends."

Naruto and Sakura watches as he heads upstairs to his room, and the moment he slams the door shut Naruto turns to Sakura and says, "He's in love with her. Manabu pretends that he doesn't because he doesn't think he's good enough, but I doubt there's anyone who likes her more than him."

"I see. That is kind of hard." Sakura looks upstairs to where she last saw Manabu, finding a little sympathy in him. She thought she wouldn't be good enough for Naruto when she found out about Mei, so she can't help but see things just like him."What he needs is a boost of confidence!"

"This is bad!" Samui speaks as she reads her letter. Hearing this the red haired dragon slayer hurries to her side.

"What's wrong?" She holds the letter out to him, allowing him to read it. "It can't be..."

"What's wrong?" - Sakura

"Sasuke has kidnapped Killer Bee. He's now a part of Akatsuki!" Naruto tells her, bringing the woman to hold her mouth in surprise.

"No way!"

'Sasuke, just what has happened to you?' - Naruto

"Good afternoon, people." Someone says. Naruto turns around to see Hakurei standing with what looks like a two bladed spear. "What? You look like you've seen a ghost."

"What are you doing here?" Naruto shouts at him, drawing his sword.

"Temper, temper; I wouldn't dream of challenging you… I actually have something to ask of you, concerning your friends." Hakurei says as he hoists his weapon over his shoulders. "Do you really think you can accept your friend Sasuke, even though he obsesses with revenge?"

"You don't know anything about Sasuke! You're just a ghost of the past trying to take advantage of his misfortune! You don't care about him or the Uchiha at all!" Naruto shouts at him.

"Get out of here or else!" Samui threatens as she holds her sword before his neck.

"Enough of your false threats, you big chested human," He states in an attempt to deliberately enrage Samui. She doesn't need anyone talking about her body except Naruto, so this works successfully.

Samui swings her blade and cuts at his neck, but it completely phases through him like he wasn't there. He digs into his chest and out comes Sasuke. His arms and legs are bind together and he has a blind fold. Naruto shouts, "Sasuke!"

"What's going on down here?" Manabu asks as he walks down the steps. There he sees the events before him. "Hakurei again!"

"Well, that ends my task of the day. You should look out for him as well." Hakurei says, gesturing to the swordsman approaching them. "Magellan will want his friend back soon."

"Wait!" Manabu shouts, rushing towards Hakurei. He disappears, fading away like he always does. 'I can't let him get his way.'

Naruto cuts off the bindings on his arms and legs. "Sasuke, are you okay?"

"Naruto, is that you?" He asks. Naruto touches the blindfold and prepares to tear it off, but Sasuke grabs his arms saying, "No, don't! I just had surgery!"

"Surgery?" – Sakura

"You okay?" Samui asks as she helps him up to his feet. Sasuke sighs and looks around, but ends up getting his face smashed into her breasts. Angry, she quickly punches him in the gut, knocking him to the ground again. "He's okay."

"Sasuke..." Sakura whispers to herself. She then kicks him hard in the stomach, shouting, "That's for bringing so much suffering to Naruto!"

'Duly noted!' - Sasuke

"Sasuke, what happened?" Naruto asks him.

"My eyes were starting to hurt so that guy did some surgery to me." He half lies; the truth is, he got his eyes replaced with Itachi's because he was starting to go blind. He's also in pain from Sakura's kick.

"I… Well yeah, but what about Itachi? What happened to him?" Naruto asks once more. He needs to know what happened to him after their spar.

"Naruto, Itachi is dead. I've completed my revenge." Sasuke says as he picks himself. "I'm guessing you want to turn me in, right?"

"Well, I have to. I'm sorry." Naruto says, sighing as he realizes his new task. He would rather have Sasuke live in prison and take his lumps than kill him. Unfortunately, now that Danzo is still Hokage the chances of him living are sort of rare.

"Hakurei is making his move on Long already." Manabu says as he walks towards the younger ninjas.

"Long?" – Sasuke

"I guess I should tell you guys what Rouki knows, but I probably better wait until Hinata is out so I don't have to repeat myself." Manabu says as he crosses his arms.

"Who's Long?" – Sasuke

"I'll go get her right now. Naruto, Samui, Sakura, keep an eye on him." Manabu says as he runs out the door.

"Okay!" Sakura says as she watches him leave. Naruto guides Sasuke to the couch and sits beside him. With Manabu gone Sakura looks back at Sasuke. Sure, she's glad that Team Seven's back together again, but she can't help but shake this terrible feeling something bad is about to happen.

"Sakura, can I trust you to look after Sasuke? I'm going inside my head." Naruto says to her.

"Huh?" – Samui/Sakura/Sasuke

"There's something I want to ask the Kyubi." Naruto tells them. He then closes his eyes and falls back on the couch.

'He talks to it now?' – Sasuke

'This doesn't look good.' Samui thinks, before turning to Sasuke. "I have something to ask of you."

"Eh?"

Inside His Mind...

Naruto enters his mind and walks down the sewers where he can find the Kyuubi. 'I better face this as soon as possible.'

"You're gonna flip for the baby?" A familiar voice speaks on the other side of the cage. Naruto takes a closer look inside and sees two Kyubi clones taking to one another in a room full of baby beds. In two of them rests two baby foxes.

"You got a better idea?" The second, chubbier Kyuubi asks. The skinnier one digs into his pocket and pulls out a quarter, before flipping it in the air. "Heads!"

Skinny Kyubi grabs the coin and slaps it on his wrist. "It's heads!"

"Yes!" Fat Kyubi says, and breathes a sigh of relief.

The skinny Kyubi glares at him before saying, "We have to assign heads to something!"

"Oh!" He then begins to think of which baby to choose. The left baby is wearing pjs with clowns on it, while the right one is wearing ducks. "Um, okay! Ducks is heads, because ducks have heads."

After that sentence, the skinny Kyubi could only stare at him with a confused look. He then musters up the courage to ask, "What kind of scary ass clowns came to your birthday?"

In the sidelines, laughter can be heard from a third person. Naruto turns to the side and sees an orange haired woman in a red kimono watching the show in a chair. "Classic sitcoms are impossibly funny!"

"What the hell is this?" Naruto says, shocking all three of them. A flare of red chakra releases from the woman when she sees Naruto, and soon a giant fox appears in their place, with the scene having been removed.

"What the hell? Knock first!" Yoko yells.

"Don't change the subject; what was that just now!" Naruto tells the fox.

"I get bored, ya know! I do scenes from my favorite sitcoms as well as kansai and kabuki. The last kansai theme was great! I haven't laughed so hard!" The Kyubi begins to laugh heartfully as he remembers the events of his last kansai play. He then lets his head drop, complaining, "I've gone completely off my rocker."

"I had no idea you had one…" Naruto says as a comedic sweat falls down his head. He then says, "Anyway, I want you to give me your chakra!"

"What is it this time? You're not in any danger." Yoko complains.

"No, I want all of your chakra this time. I want to become stronger so I don't go berserk when I use Super Dragonforce!" He says.

The fox stares at Naruto for the longest time, so long the red head couldn't stand the suspense. Waiting for him to answer is killing him, so he shouts, "Did you hear me?"

"I heard you, and I can't believe you're asking me for help. I don't like you." The beast says to him.

"You…" – Naruto

"You're not getting anything from me. Beat it!" The fox says, now turning into that hot woman from before.

"So, you're a girl?" – Naruto

"I can be whatever I want to be. I am afterall, simply a form of chakra given shape," Replies the female fox. Another fox appears beside him before beginning to take his clothes off. Naruto gapes and blocks his eyes when he begins to realize what's about to happen. "It's not gay, it's masturbation."

"Too much information!" Naruto runs away from the cage as fast as he could. 'That's disgusting!'

"It is, isn't it?" A person speaks. Naruto looks around in search of the man's voice, and soon realizes that voice is different from the Kyubi's, but surprisingly familiar.

"Hello? Is someone else there?" Naruto asks as he looks around.

"I'm surprised you don't realize who this is. I did leave some of my power with you." The voice continues at a slow pace. Naruto turns around when he feels a presence behind him, but sees nothing. In the sewer that is his mind, he should be able to know what's going on. "Oh well. It's not time for me to appear completely yet."

All of a sudden, Naruto is forced back into the real world.

Outside of His Head...

Naruto quickly opens his eyes. He looks around back and forth, seeing Samui, Sakura and Sasuke still here. He sighs, saying, "I couldn't get anything. I guess I'll have to make him help me."

"Make him? You mean the Kyubi? Will you be strong enough," Asks Sakura in a worried tone.

"We have to have fate in Naruto. After all, he is the man who promised our lives to." Samui says to her.

"That doesn't mean he has to risk his life! I'd rather have a weak, living Naruto than a strong, dead hero!" Sakura says back, hugging the red headed ninja. "Don't you agree?"

"I want him to live to, but it seems the only way to live is to fight." Samui states.

"Still..." Naruto places a hand on Sakura's left hand, stopping her from continuing.

"It'll be fine. I won't die that easily." Naruto says to her in hopes of reassurance. He then grabs Sasuke and asks, "What do we do to him?"

"We should turn him in. Even if there's a chance Danzo might kill him, we can't harbor a fugitive." Samui speaks, knowing that is the right thing to do. "Our lives are already at risk for having him here, plus he's wanted in Kumogakure for capturing Killer Bee-sensei."

"I told you, I didn't kidnap him! He escaped and left us with a dummy." Sasuke tells her.

"Wait, what?" Naruto asks in surprise. "A dummy?"

"When me, Byakko and Seiryu kidnapped Killer Bee we dropped him off at Madara's headquarters. But it turns out he tricked us; he only transformed a piece of himself to look like his full body while he escaped." Sasuke explains to Naruto. Since he's the one who didn't know about it when they were talking, because he was stuck inside his head at the time, telling him is the only thing he could do.

Samui grits her teeth in anger. "Yes, you did say that. Killer Bee is the type of person who would take advantage of something like that, but the fact remains that Kumo thinks you kidnapped him. Not only that, but you ran away from Konoha and tried to kill Naruto, a ninja from Konoha and your best friend! You're not going to be let off easy!"

"You're right. I won't be let off that easy." Sasuke says, placing a hand on the strap covering his eyes. "But unfortunately, neither will any of you."

"Eh?" Sakura and Samui say in unison. Suddenly, Sasuke removes his strap, and slowly opens his eyes. They take a moment to get use to the light, but eventually his eyes are able to see clearly.

"I have obtained it, the eternal eyes." Sasuke mutters out loud, glaring at Naruto and the girls with his new eyes.

"So he can use his eyes?" Sakura shouts in a questioning manner. She and Samui lunge at the Uchiha, who quickly glares at their eyes. For a second the Mangekyou Sharingan flares, too fast for them to see it clearly, but enough for them to fall to Tsukiyomi's gaze.

Sakura and Samui fall to the ground, leaving Naruto to go to their side. "Sakura! Samui!"

"These eyes are great! I don't know why he told me to wait another day!" Sasuke says as he walks towards the door.

"Sasuke, stop! What are you doing?" Naruto shouts in total surprise.

"Naruto, you don't know what going on do you?" Sasuke asks him in a deadpan voice. He then turns around speaking, "Itachi was a tool used by Konoha; he was ordered by your council and Danzo to kill our entire clan just because we were planning a coup d'état to take over the entire village!"

"Eh?" - Naruto

"So, you really didn't know... My revenge doesn't end here. I won't stop until I kill every last person in Konoha!" Sasuke shouts at the end, summoning his new Decalogue. "Itachi believed my life was more important than the village, so should I! I will kill everyone; you, those two, your friend Manabu, and most especially Danzo!"

"Is that it, huh? Fine. I'll accept it." Naruto says, holding his arms out to the side.

"...Okay, now it's my turn to say 'eh'?" Sasuke states.

"I've recently tasted the desire of revenge. Pain killed Jiraiya and I couldn't let that go! But when I spoke with him I decided to forgive him, knowing that he use to be his student and finding out why he desires revenge, I couldn't bring myself to killing him. He then forgave me and brought back all the people he killed." Naruto explains, confessing what he did in his encounter with Pain. "If you're going to kill me, then go ahead. Even if you do that, and kill everyone else in this village, your revenge won't end there. You'll be compelled to killing everyone associated with Konoha, Danzo, and the massacre of your family! You can only find peace with yourself by forgiving the root of your revenge."

Sasuke remains silent and motionless as he listens to Naruto, and even after he finishes. After a few seconds of silence Naruto breaks it by shouting, "Did you hear what I said?"

"Yeah." Sasuke's sword transforms into Explosion, and he dashes forward at Naruto. Using Bakuensaiga he strikes Naruto on top of the head, knocking him out quickly. He falls to the ground. "Things just aren't that simple, Naruto."

Sasuke leans down and grabs hold of his neck, reshaping Explosion into Decalogue. He then stabs down at him, but misses any part of his body. 'Why? Why can't I kill him?'

"Bravo, Sasuke," Speaks Hakurei as he walks into view. "Bravo."

"Hakurei? What are you doing here?" Sasuke questions him.

"I'm here to take that. I was hoping for the boy to become strong enough to kill Long, but now I've lost patience." Hakurei uses levitation magic to lift the red haired ninja up. He then grabs him and turns away. "I'll just have to revive Juubi and use him instead."

"Wait, you were using me?" Sasuke questions.

"Of course! Do you really think I care about some stupid massacre? I only need a power strong enough to topple the Great God Dragon. After all, it's the only way I can take back my throne." Hakurei uses his time space ability to transport Naruto away. "But, I guess I can still use you. Danzo isn't here."

"What? You sai-GAHH!" Sasuke suddenly grasps his face, or the portion that has his eyes, and drops to his knees. Decalogue reverts to dark fumes and enters his arm. "My eyes!"

"Oh yeah, you're not fully healed yet. You need another day of rest." Hakurei walks over to Sasuke, lifting him up with his magic and transporting him away. A gunshot fires in the distance, and Hakurei uses his spear to block it. There he sees Manabu and Hinata by the door.

"You again! What are you doing back?" Manabu shouts, shooting another round at him.

"I'm borrowing your two boys. Jane!" Hakurei vanishes away.

"Naruto!" Hinata shouts, running into the living room to see Samui and Sakura unconscious. "Samui-san! Sakura! Please wake up! Hang in there!"

"Damn that Hakurei... I didn't think Naruto would be unable to fight against Sasuke..." Manabu curses as he sheathes his blade away. 'I can't believe this happened.'

Elsewhere...

"That was easy." Magellan says as Hakurei appears before him. Behind the sasquatch is the Gedo statue Pein used to capture the Biju in. "Why didn't you do that before?"

"We have seven of the Biju now. I was waiting for all eight, but now's as good a time as ever. Akatsuki can't waist time waiting for all eight anymore." Hakurei says to Magellan.

"Whatever." Magellan grabs a spiked ball and chain and walks to the nearest cave entrance. "I'm going to Konoha. I have to pay someone a little visit."

"Sure. Go ahead." Hakurei tells him, transforming back into Madara. Just as soon as he leaves, Zetsu comes in and approaches him. Hakurei then says, "Great timing. I have captured the Nine Tails Jinchuuriki."

"Huh? That was easy." Zetsu states, crossing his arms as he looks down at the unconscious boy. Next to the red head is Sasuke, who is blindfolded and knocked out too. "**What about him?**"

"Ignore Sasuke. We have a much bigger problem to deal with. Mizuki!" Upon his call, the Anubis demon Mizuki leaps from up top the statue's head to face them. "The three of us will begin to extract the Kyubi from the boy. It'll take a while because there's only three of us, but we have no choice in the matter."

"Oh, don't worry. I can handle that problem." Mizuki says. He then holds his hands together and summons a dark energy from his body. "I can bring back to life our former comrades to link to the statue."

"Oh, that's the Anubis clan demon for you!" Hakurei says with a smile. "I knew what I was doing by resurrecting you for this task, both of you."

"Resurrecting?" - White Zetsu

"That's not important. Let's hurry up. If either of them wakes up before we begin our plans will be ruined."

What will happen to Naruto now? Will he escape or become nothing but a memory? What will become of Sasuke? Why am I asking you this when you've probably stopped reading by now? But most importantly, what was that earlier?

* * *

Yusei: Next time Sasuke comes to realize the error of his ways, but finds that it's too late. Magellan meets what's left of Rouki, and a collection of Narutos appears.


	33. Manabu vs Magellan

_**Naruto and The Water Princess**_

Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah. I do not own Naruto and blah, blah, blah.

Kenshin: So... Enjoy...

_**Chapter 33: Manabu vs Magellan

* * *

**_

In A Bright World...

Here, in this world, life doesn't exist. The sun is gone, there is no agriculture around, and the only flowing element around is the pillar of light that serves as a one way ticket to this world. This is the world of nothingness, a realm that exists far away from the world where humans and even demons live. The unfortunate souls who come here are forever erased from the memories of everyone who ever knew them.

There also exists a ferocious beast. This creature is a collection of evil souls who couldn't be fully erased. Its lower body holds what looks like spider legs, it has a scorpion tail behind, and it's as pale and white as this world. Its upper body consists of a hairy gorilla like body with bat wings folded on its back, and twin horns pertruding from the sides of its head. It also looks like it has a mouth made of its skin. The power of this creature is exponential. Should it leave for the human world no one would ever survive its wrath.

That's why this person is here. His name is Kaimuto Namikaze. He is a fusion of two beings; Kagirinai the god of nothing and Naruto Uzumaki Namikaze of a different world. He remains in this world to protect the only way out from that eternal beast. Since he is also immortal he'll be fighting that monster for the rest of eternity. As long as he stays there the 7 women he loves will be safe.

"Tenten, Hinata, Sakura, Anko, Kurenai, Ino, Yugito... It's been a year since I've stayed in this world. I hope you are all okay." He says, looking down with a look of depression on his face. "Still, it's better I stay than him."

He suddenly turns to the left, and spots a spear of light coming towards him. "What the?"

He stands up and prepares to grab it, but it passes through him and vanishes. "Huh?"

The another similar arrow comes back from behind him and stabs him in the back of his head. After rearing in pain, he suddenly vanishes into thin air, just like Naruto Kazama.

...

"What?" Shizune shouts appalled a bit at what she just heard from Manabu. "You want to quit being a ninja?"

"I can't do much to assist Naruto now. I'll only get in the way." Manabu tells her, handing the woman his Hitai-e. "Being the Hokage's assistant I'm sure you can give it to him."

"But Danzo is still out at the Gokage meeting, and Naruto may really need you! He's kidnapped by Akatsuki, and you're just gonna abandon him?" She yells at him. Behind her lays the still comatose body of Tsunade, and they are inside a tent. The first thing Manabu did after Naruto was kidnapped was head straight to Shizune. Since Danzo is gone he couldn't tell him or anyone else. Not only that, but he still wants to believe in Naruto before he could file Sasuke for death. And here, Shizune is flipping out after hearing he wishes to quit being a ninja. It's too much for her to take in at once. "How can you call him your friend?"

"Don't ask me questions." Manabu says, turning around to walk off.

"Tsunade-sama, please wake up. Sakura, Samui, and the village needs you." - Shizune

Manabu manages to make it back to the house to find his bag and stuff in Hinata's hands. "I'm ready."

"Manabu, are you sure this plan of yours will work?" Hinata asks while handing him his stuff.

"Yes. It'll work. I can't let you give up your career for a plan like this. It's the least I can do for Naruto." Manabu explains to her, strapping his sword to his back underneath his bag. He then draws it and forms Kuro Getsuga.

"Please be careful. Naruto's not the only one who I'm worried for. Good luck." She says. "How can you find Naruto? Do you have a feeling of where he might be?"

"There's a hunch. If this works, I'll know exactly where he is." Mana charges away at high speed after telling her those words. 'From what I know by Rouki's thoughts, there shouldn't be that many members of Akatsuki left. Naruto should have more days left before they completely drain him of the Kyubi's chakra.'

These hopeful words continue to dash through his mind as he runs outside the gates of Konoha. 'All I have to do is survive long enough to get that information.'

The Next Day...

"Sheesh, how long is this gonna take?" White Zetsu asks.

"We're dealing with the Kyubi Jinchuuriki. We'll be here twice as long as we should because of the fact that we're short of members." Hakurei states as he continues to concentrate on the task at hand.

Naruto is floating in midair right under the Gedo statue, with his Kyubi energy being sucked out into it. Sasuke is no where in sight, which is good for the three villains trying to seal away the Kyubi. Mizuki is personally taking pride in being involved with Naruto's death, especially for providing an extra hand in sealing the kid away next to him. But as he thinks about the capable people to seal the kid's demon away, the images of Sheji and Magellan enter his mind.

"Why couldn't we have gotten Magellan, Honatsu and Sheji to help? They could provide the help we need." He states.

"Magellan?" - Black Zetsu

"Magellan is going off to do his own thing, and he's too powerful for me to force. Sheji is completely loyal to only Long, and the moment he found out what I was truly planning he would be singing to that dragon bastard like a Japanese pop artist!" Hakurei explains to them before sighing. He has to remain still for this to work. "I think Honatsu's with that chicken right now."

"Why would he be with him?" - Mizuki

"Concentrate Anubis. We're down to 30 percent." - Hakurei

Later That Afternoon...

"I can't seem to find that guy." Manabu mutters while meditating. He is actually trying to enter Sage Mode so he can easily track Naruto by his chakra.

He is right now by the ruins of the Village Hidden in Hot Water. He doesn't think they could be here, but since he has no general idea of where they could be just randomly wandering is all he can do.

Luckily, his patience is about to pay off.

As Manabu meditates, or to be more correct gathering Sage Chakra, he begins to feel miniature earthquakes. He remembers feeling this type of shake while in battle against Hao's men. He also catches the energy signal of someone

"How's it going, kid?" A voice speaks to him. Manabu opens his eyes quickly and flips away, avoiding a shockwave that flattens the ground he was just sitting on. Manabu lands and turns left to face his attacker, Magellan. He looks different though; he has a furrier body, his face looks distorted and mangled like an animal that can't live in society, and he doesn't look like he's wearing any clothes now. In his left hand held up in the air is a giant spiked ball attached to a chain in his left hand.

"I knew you would show." Manabu says as he looks at the Sasquatch. "You're here for Rouki, aren't you?"

"Of course. You're all that's left of him. I can revive my friend by taking you with me." Magellan explains with a snort. He then throws his ball at him. The ground underneath the ball as it goes towards Manabu becomes flattened before it reaches him.

He leaps in the air and attaches his Sage Chakra to his feet. He runs up the ball until he sees Magellan standing behind it. He jumps off it and lifts the Twilight Star up, prepared to come down and cut him in half. Magellan jumps away to the left and pulls his weapon back. As Manabu lands and misses he turns around to see the demon's ball coming back at him. He jumps and rolls away to the right to evade the attack, and fires a round from Omega Arts.

The ball blocks it, causing part of it to freeze. Magellan lifts his weapon up into the air and swings it with ease. Being such a big weapon he could easily tear Manabu to pieces. Manabu jumps back to avoid the weapon. He continues to flip back to avoid Magellan's weapon as he continues to loosen his chain to spread his distance. Any debris that was caught got destroyed.

"I'll have to just go for it!" Manabu dashes in just as the ball comes up to his left. He steps into a position to avoid the spikes, and blocks it with his free left hand. The swordsman then pushes it back, budging Magellan slightly to his right as the weight of his weapon worked against him. Manabu then closes the distance between him and Magellan, using Kuro Getsuga. He gathers chakra in the palm of his hand to form a Rasengan. 'Thanks for teaching me this, Naruto!' "Rasengan!"

He slams the attack at Magellan's stomach, who blocks with his left hand. He generates a shockwave in his hand to avoid getting the majority of the Rasengan's damage. Still, he is blown away along with the spiraling sphere, which expands, and crashes into a building that explodes upon impact.

"Now, where is Naruto? Tell me where Hakurei has taken him!" Manabu demands, back handling his sword.

"Is that your plan? Defeat me and get information out of me?" Magellan speaks as he rises from the rubble, relatively unharmed.

"Yeah. I feel you wouldn't talk without a fight. Rouki's memories work well." Manabu speaks as he places a hand on the guard of his sword. It's at this moment that he takes a moment to look at his sword properly; it's a silver colored Excalibur with one pointed edge on the guard. It has a crystal blue gem in the middle of the guard with a cobalt wrapping around the hilt. Written along the blade on one side is the word light in cobalt.

Manabu presses down on the sword's guard and the gem glows bright red, crimson to be more precise. He then flips it over into his left hand upward, holding it behind his right cheek. "Ryuseiha Event Horizon!"

He lifts his arm and swings diagonally at Magellan, holding his arm and sword behind his back now. This attack releases a beam of sparkling white energy that travels towards Magellan.

"Uraaah!" Magellan punches the air in front of the Event Horizon, creating a shockwave that eradicates the attack. The shockwave also blows Manabu to the ground. "Did you really think it would be that easy?"

Instead of making a clever response, Manabu lifts his head and glares at the beast. Magellan pulls his weapon towards Manabu, who stands up to his feet. He swings at the ball, releasing Event Horizon once more. It cuts clean through the weapon, melting the insides like a hot knife through butter. As the ball splits open, a multitude of weapons pop out from the inside, revealing the ball itself to be hallow.

Manabu jumps up in the air to avoid the metal objects, but he receives a shockwave punch from a following Magellan. This blows him into a building that hasn't quite been destroyed by Hao's former men. He quickly picks himself up though, the damage reduced thanks to Sage Mode.

"What's wrong? Can't you use that splendid blade of yours to overwhelm me?" Magellan taunts from outside as he grabs a halberd attached to a kusarigama. "Jishin no Naginata!"

He swings on the ground, releasing a shockwave that travels through the ground towards the building Manabu is in. The swordsman jumps out in time just as it is split in half and leveled, sending an Event Horizon at Magellan. The beast swings, shouting, "That won't work on me!"

His earthquake destroys the attack. Manabu lands outside and glares at Magellan from the corner of his eye. 'I can't use the other nine swords once I initiate the second Ryuseiha. It'll take a minute for those swords to be available again.. Oh well. I didn't get where I am by not taking chances.'

"Have another!" Magellan releases a third Jishin no Naginata attack, going towards Manabu.

"Starlight Rave, recharge." He says, and the red gem turns blue. Manabu presses down on the guard trigger once more, causing the top half of it, nearest the blade, to turn red. He presses down on it again, causing a yellow light to replace the bottom half of the gem where it's blue. He then lifts it up and swings at the shockwave. This time his attack cuts clean into the shockwave, both of them canceling the other out.

"What the hell?" Magellan growls.

'The Starlight Rave may seem like a normal sword, but it's still my version of the final sword of the Twilight Star, the Rainbow Star Sword. Its only ability is Ryuseiha, which has three versions; Event Horizon, Magic Hour and Prism Star Break. Each one desires a part of my energy in order to be used. Event Horizon releases an energy slash and takes the least amount of energy, like Omega Arts, and requires one push.' Manabu thinks in his head as he charges at the beast. Magellan swings his chain scythe at Manabu, who ducks underneath the attack and continues to him while crouching. He then spins as he swings his blade, cutting Magellan as he passes by. But the Sasquatch jumps away to avoid his blade. 'Magic Hour is a light attack that destroys whatever it touches from the inside, like that attack of Magellan's. It only affects the inside of what it touches, and takes about twice as much as Event Horizon. It can only be used once per charge too.'

"I don't know what that was earlier, but that won't hit me again!" Magellan swings his foot and kicks Manabu in the stomach. At this instance his Sage Mode time limit runs out, five minutes, and he is knocked away into the air by the shockwave produced.

Blood is hurled from his mouth as he begins his descent to the ground below. 'Sage Mode timed out! I have to make this count; I'm in the air high away from the ground, so I should have enough time.'

Manabu closes his eyes and remains still, by bringing his legs together and concentrating hard. Before he reaches the ground he opens his eyes, revealing his Sage eyes, and crashes into the dirt. Manabu stands back up, and glares at Magellan. He doesn't feel any pain from the fall, which is proof that he has entered Sage Mode. Unlike all those other times, his eyes are the only changes from his normal appearance; this shows he has finally mastered it. "Let's go!"

Manabu charges at Magellan, who releases another Jishin no Naginata. Manabu slashes and releases Ryuseiha, Event Horizon form, and jumps to the side. He evades the earthquake attack, which clears a path, and Magellan has his chest receive a hole from the light attack. Manabu then forms a perfect Rasengan and throws it up into the air. The moment it comes down before him he swings his sword and releases Ryuseiha, sending the Rasengan at Magellan like a baseball.

The energy of the Ryuseiha gathers around the spiraling sphere, blasting the Sasquatch square in the same wounded area. The beast falls to his knees. Manabu then walks over to him, saying, "Now, you will tell me where Naruto is."

"Like hell I will!" Magellan pounds the ground with his right fist, opening up a fissure directly underneath Manabu.

"Gya!" Manabu falls into the hole. His body scrapes along the wall on his left, before he bounces off onto the right wall. He stabs his blade into the dirt wall to keep himself from falling down, though by now his jacket, undershirt and chainmail, and the left leg of his pants have been ripped off. "Damn. I wasn't expecting this..."

"The one who should give what the other wants is you!" Magellan growls, grasping his wound painfully. He mutters, "How could such a weak human damage me this much? My hard muscles should have been able to stop those attacks!"

Manabu looks down at his left arm, which is just as bloody as his mouth from that spit up in the air. 'I think I may have internal bleeding. Still, I can't give up just yet.'

Manabu stabs his right foot into the earth wall and lifts his left arm up to his blade. He whispers, "Starlight Rave, Recharge," and the gem reverts to blue. He then presses down on the guard trigger, with the top third of the gem turning red. He presses it again, and another portion of the gem turns yellow. The final and third push transforms the red of the gem into a green color. Several lines of rainbow like light flashes through the sword. 'I'll have one shot at this. He didn't see this attack back then, so he'll be unable to predict it.'

"Let's go!" Manabu pulls his sword out and stomps on the wall with his other foot, before running up the wall at full speed. By injecting chakra to his feet he can move along the wall. Magellan stomps on the ground, causing the fissure to cave in.

Manabu jumps off the wall, just as debris falls down towards him. He lands on one and hops all the way up to the top, finally reaching the surface. He turns around towards Magellan, whispering, "Prism Star Break," and he swings his blade diagonally at him.

"Jishin no Naginata-" Just as he unleashes his shockwave, Manabu's attack cuts through it clean like it wasn't even there. The line where Manabu cut not only split in half the ground, but the air and even the objects in its path. Magellan's left arm is caught in the slash along with the chain of the kusarigama, separated by a glowing rainbow light. Everything behind Magellan that got cut just like him reverts to normal, save for the big foot himself. "Wh-What the hell?"

Manabu curses, "Damn. I missed him."

Magellan looks down at his fallen arm, and the blood gushing out of the wound in what's left of it. He glares angrily at Manabu, grumbling, "Unforgivable..."

'Oh great, now he's mad.' - Manabu

"Unforgivable!" Magellan roars loudly at Manabu, releasing a shockwave that blows him, part of the ground in front of him, and even the air away.

Manabu lands and painfully rolls over the ground. Magellan jumps up in the air and stomps on his body, releasing another one of his quakes to damage his body. Blood gushes out of his mouth from that single stomp and he sinks lower into the ground. Magellan jumps up in the air again to repeat, saying, "One more!"

"Ryuseiha!" Manabu swings and releases Event Horizon, cutting a curved wound on the big foot's right chest breast. He falls backwards and crashes.

Manabu presses down on the guard twice, and the gem glows blue, red and yellow. Magellan struggles to lean up with his only arm, but when Manabu presses down on the guard one last time, he could tell the end is near. "So, I guess this is it, huh?"

"You care about Rouki enough to risk your life... that kind of bond of friendship is something I can respect." Manabu says, looking at the big foot creature. "I can spare you, but you have to tell me where Naruto is. He is my friend too."

"Yes, risking your life for a friend sounds just like what I'm doing. I'm already dead once Long finds out..." Magellan speaks as he glares at him. "Do you actually plan to spare me?"

"I'm not the type of person who could just kill somebody. I'm a man of my word." Manabu replies. He could feel himself grow tired, and realizes that he has lost Sage Mode's powers. "But I will do what I have to do."

"Right... Naruto is in Amegakure. Akatsuki used to have a base there when Pein and Konan were a part of them. They still use it, but Konan probably doesn't know about it yet." Magellan responds, giving out his information about Naruto.

"Thank you." Manabu says. He places his free hand on the sword's gem, canceling its powers. He sheathes it and walks off, clutching his stomach in pain. "Oh yeah, I do remember Rouki's last thoughts. He says you were a fool, but a great friend!"

Magellan smiles as he hears those words, and lies back down in content. Once Manabu is out of shouting distance he cries, "GAAAAH! My arm is in such pain!"

The Next Day...

"How long is this gonna take?" Mizuki complains. His body feels a little stiff and he can't scratch this annoying itch on his butt.

"We're almost done. Down to 95 percent." Hakurei speaks as they continue to drain Naruto of his demon chakra. The villainous skeleton king smirks as he continues to replay his plan in his mind, and the results of them. 'Soon Long. Soon I will have my revenge. Once I find the last host I will use him to crush you forever...'

Suddenly, before he could realize it, a shining light shoots down from above. It strikes Naruto in his left eye, and he vanishes with it. The demon chakra leaking from his body is suddenly cut off from the statue, and the jutsu ends. Mizuki shouts, "What the hell?"

"Where did he go?" Black Zetsu shouts, looking for the blond ninja.

"Something unforeseen must have happened..." Hakurei states, realizing the type of jutsu that was. 'That was a Hiraishin kunai the Fourth Hokage had. Why was it in that light?'

Meanwhile in that very same cave, Manabu is watching them in secret. He is shocked to have seen that as well. Although what's shocking is that Manabu appears to be completely healed. It's as if he never fought against Magellan a day ago. 'Where did he go?'

"You little vermin!" Hakurei holds his hand out and releases a blast of wind in Manabu's direction, exposing his position. "Oh, it's you. Did you have anything to do with what just happened?"

"I just got here. What did you do to Naruto?" - Manabu

"We didn't do shit!" Mizuki states, jumping over to Manabu. "But we can't let you leave here now that you know our location."

"Crap." Manabu draws his Starlight Rave and holds his position. Before either of them could make a move, the sound of thunder resonates throughout the cave. "Eh?"

The cave suddenly shakes from the force of the lightning. The ceiling blows away from a bolt of electricity, and down descends a man in golden and green robes and garbs. He glares at everyone below him, as he becomes surrounded with golden energy. "Hey, how are things Hakurei?"

"Long..." Hakurei mutters in a menacing tone. "What brings you here?"

"I'm here to kill you you piece of shit!" Long bellows, landing before the demons and humans. Zetsu looks at the situation and dissolve away in to the ground, escaping. "Why did I have to find out from Sheji that you had Naruto Uzumaki here?"

'That damn snake!' "I-I was simply placing the Kyubi inside of him within the Gedo Statue! You want Juubi back, right?" Hakurei explains, trying to sound calm despite the situation. His response is a lightning bolt to the face.

"You should have told me in the first place! Do you really think I can trust a freak like you?" The dragon growls, shocking him even harder with more lightning. Manabu, seeing how out of place he is, runs out of the cave to avoid anymore confrontation. After all, since Naruto isn't there he can't do anything. Long roars out in frustration and anger, before reaching out to grab Hakurei. "We're heading to Konoha. I want to slay that bastard and take back my beloved water princess!"

"Do you really think that water dragon will forgive you if you kill her loved one?" - Hakurei

"What?" - Mizuki

"Doesn't matter... She will realize eventually how great a choice I am." Long tells him, summoning a sphere of ice. Appearing inside of it is the image of a beautiful woman with red hair. "Hakurei, you will announce war on the humans within Konohagakure. I will have a little chat with my beloved woman."

'Hopeless romantic fool...' Hakurei complains in his head. 'How could I have been overpowered by such a love-struck lizard?'

Elsewhere...

Naruto opens his eyes and looks around, shocked to find that he's still alive. The last thing he remembers is being trapped inside a dream, where the Kyubi was telling him he was being slowly drawn away from his body. Confused, he rises up from where he is laying and yawns, feeling rested and beat at the same time from his 3 day sleep. His surroundings are similar to a forest. "Where am I?"

* * *

Yusei: So, we put this chapter to a close... I mean we bring this chapter to a close.

Kenshin: In the next chapter Naruto discovers he's in an alternate dimension. There he reunites with his two other personalities.


	34. Alternate Destiny

**_Naruto and The Water Princess_**

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the other stuff. Let's see... One Piece, Fairy Tail, Static and there was one more...

Yusei: Manabu, wake up!

Manabu: *opens eyes* You know, I thought you'd be the last person to wake me from a nap.

Yusei: Well who's going to do the story if I take a nap?

Manabu: Eh? *watches Yusei fall fast asleep* Should have guessed. Well enjoy this long awaited chapter.

_**Chapter 34: Alternate Destiny**_

* * *

"What a terrible meeting..." Mei mutters so low no one could hear her. She is currently in the land of Iron in a meeting with the other five Kage; Onoki, E, Gaara and Danzo. They are all currently discussing a war against Akatsuki due to them having kidnapped up to seven of the Jinchuuriki and stealing their demons. Even worse, Danzo has been chosen as the leader of the Shinobi continents. 'I should say something.'

Before she could a lightning bolt pierces through the ceiling onto the table. In the lightning appears Hakurei dressed as Madara/Tobi. Just looking at him brings upon an ominous presence to Mei.

…

Naruto walks along the forest, wondering what is going on. He recognizes the forest though as the ones around Konoha, but it looks too ruined to be so. It's like something terrible happened in the three days he was asleep. Naruto closes his eyes and digs into his mind, but he finds that the Kyubi that should be inside of his body is gone.

"Where did he go?" Naruto asks himself. He looks up at his forehead and sees a dagger on his forehead. He then pulls it out, saying, "What the hell is this?"

Suddenly out of nowhere, a beam comes flying at Naruto. He slips it inside his jacket and ducks in time, as it melts through a tree. He looks around for whoever could have shot that, and sees a group of soldiers hoisting guns. They look like mooks though. "Throw your hands up, now!"

"What?" - Naruto

"I said now! Put your hands in the air or we'll shoot!" The soldier says to him.

"What are you talking about? Who are you?" Naruto asks, not raising his hands at all.

"Fire!" The soldiers fire at Naruto. He reaches for his saucer but realizes he left it home. So instead he summons a running hurricane to blow them away. Naruto then sends out electric streams to capture their guns.

"There! Now you'll tell me what's going on!" Naruto says, causing them to blow up.

"Oh no! He's a monster! Run!" The leader says, running off away from him.

"Eh?" Naruto mutters, watching them leave. With nothing left to do Naruto uses his electric powers to recycle the charred metal into a saucer for him to fly on. "There we go. Now I can search the place from the skies."

Suddenly he hears a noise coming in from behind. He turns around and spots someone charging in with a shotgun. Taking the moment to look at her he sees that the person is Hinata, sort of. She has cut her hair short, one of her eyes is covered by a bandaged patch, she's wearing a forest mess outfit, and she has a blade attached to her left leg. "Put your hands up!"

"Hinata? What happened to you?" Naruto asks in shock. She flinches and pulls her eye away from the gun vision, looking at the boy carefully. She begins to shiver in shock.

"N-Naruto? Naruto, is that you?" she asks in a horrified tone.

"Of course it is! Where are we? And what happened to your eye?" he asks after answering her. Her answer is that of a huge hug, tears falling from her eyes. Yes, even the one bandaged up is crying. "Hinata?"

"I'm so glad you're alive! I thought you were dead!" she cries into his shoulder. The bushes beside them begin to russle, and Temari comes out with what looks like a sniper rifle. She says to her, "Temari, Naruto is alive!"

"Huh?" Naruto looks to her side and spots Temari. She's dressed similarly to Hinata.

"It really is him... But why does he have red hair?" - Temari

"Who cares? He's alive!" Hinata says, resuming her hug on the red haired half dragon. Naruto manages to push her off though.

"Hold on a second! What's going on? Why did you think I was dead? What happened to you?" - Naruto

"There is something wrong with him... Naruto, come with us. We're taking you home," Temari says, grabbing hold of her arm.

"Eh?" Hinata and Temari drag Naruto towards Konoha, moving as fast as they could. Eventually they come before the hidden village; only it looks like some freaky futuristic gate is placed all around the village like a dome. Naruto and the girls enter the dome. Inside he sees that most of the village is built more like a city. 'Where the hell am I? A dream?'

...

"Hakurei, what do you think you're doing, chicken?" Sheji questions the skeletal demon. He levitates down towards the person and stabs his weapon into the ground. "Starting a war with the humans? Are you trying to get on Long-sama's bad side?"

"Long wanted me to kill the last Uzumaki and deliver his message to the water princess... The only possible theory to his disappearance is that someone is hiding him... For this war to succeed I need your help too..." Hakurei says to the basilisk, answering his questions.

"Is that so? Then I'll level each of their villages one by one!" Sheji says, prepared to head for the nearest ninja village.

"That won't be necessary. We just need you to partake in the battlefield. I also need your energy to call forth the souls of the dead. We need cannon fodder anyway."

...

"Leader, we've brought a visitor!" Temari says as she enters the main office of the village leader, with Hinata and Naruto beside her. Inside they spot Gaara, Kakashi, Shizune and a woman with red hair at a round table with a blond man at the back, their leader.

The first four members look up at Naruto and gasp in shock when they see him, especially the red haired woman. She slowly steps towards him, tears beginning to form in her eyes. "Naruto!"

"Eh?" The woman grabs hold of Naruto and hugs him, having leaned to reach his level. "Uh, do I know you?"

"Eh? You don't know your own mother?" she says, looking into his eyes. "Wait, when did you get red hair?"

"Mother?"

"I don't think that's Naruto..." Kakashi says, walking closer to him. "He looks like him, but he's younger than him and he has red hair. Not to mention he's dressed like a clown."

"Hey! At least I don't wear a mask over my face 24 hours a day! You look like a clown!" Naruto shouts at him.

"...No, that's Naruto alright!" - Kakashi

"But why doesn't he recognize me?" The woman asks, looking back at the blond man. Naruto looks at him and gasps in shock when he realizes that it's his father once he lifts his head. "Minato...!"

"There is something different about him..." Minato says before he walks towards his 'son'.

'Why is my father alive? I thought he died!' Naruto asks in his head, still under the shock of his father being alive. That's when he realizes something. 'Wait... Could this be one of those alternate universes? That dagger must have brought me here by accident! It's probably just like that time those other two came by!'

"Naruto, are you okay?" Minato asks him.

"Y-Yeah. I'm cool. But I think I'm not the Naruto you're looking for. I've come from an alternate universe!" Naruto says, confusing the adults.

"Huh? What are you talking about?" - Minato

"Well..." Naruto then explains to him about his world; his past, his family, the four women he will soon marry, and the last thing he remembers. "...And then I ended up in the forest."

"So, let me get this straight; you're not a cyborg?" Minato asks, now confusing his son.

"Eh?"

"...Let me explain." Minato brings his son to the table and lets him sit down. "I guess if you aren't my Naruto, I might as well tell you what happened to you; You were kidnapped, modified, and killed."

"I was what?" - Naruto

"A criminal organization called Akatsuki has grown in power over the past few years by buying weapons from other countries. Soon they began their attack, wiping away entire civilizations with their cannons and nuclear bombs. Konoha is the last stronghold capable to standing up to them," he says, beginning his explanation of their world. "Things went bad when they started capturing humans to modify them into weapons...You were one of them chosen specifically because of your special inner talent."

"...And I died?" Naruto finally asks. The red haired woman turns around with sadness in her eyes.

"Not at first. You were successfully remodeled and used to attack us, but eventually you regained your conscious and fought to save Hinata from death. We haven't seen or heard from you since... We can only assume..."

"I see..." Naruto turns around, facing away from his father. His head shoots up when he realizes something, asking, "Wait, where's Akatsuki?"

"In Ame. We were planning to lure them into a trap, but now that you're here we may have a chance," Minato says, taking his son and bringing him back to the table. "If you possess the same inner talent as Naruto, you may have a chance as stopping them."

"Inner talent?" Naruto asks.

"Naruto was one of the few humans on this planet who could use magic. They wanted that," he explains to him.

"Well, I guess I can help. I hate Akatsuki as much as you do!"

...

"What the hell are you doing?" Sasuke asks at Hakurei. Currently they are in the Akatsuki hideout. He has a giant wooden coffin in front of them, opened up to reveal the body inside. It walks out, revealing itself to be Itachi. "Hoisting war on Konoha?

"Isn't that what you want? Take off your bandages for a moment," Hakurei tells Sasuke. He removes his bandages, and his eyes plaster onto Itachi

"Nii-sama!"

"My greatest ability is to resurrect humans and demons, and modify them to become stronger. It's what I did to Mizuki when Rouki killed," he says, turning to Itachi. "He will become a part of the army."

"Sasuke... I'm a little disappointed in you," he says to his little brother. Sasuke could tell that it's really him; even though this might not be his real body, he still has his hair style and those Sharingan eyes. Somehow his new body allowed him to replace them. "You knew about my sacrifice, and yet you continue to undo my work?"

"I couldn't forgive Konoha for what they did to you! To our family! To mom!" Sasuke shouts at his older brother. "I wanted... I wanted the Uchiha clan to be reborn!"

"And is this what you call being reborn? It won't work. All you're doing is digging yourself deeper. Is it worth avenging a clan destined to destroy itself over being with people who love you?" Itachi asks him, stepping towards the younger Uchiha. Hakurei pushes him back, pulling out a marked kunai.

"Stay back, you pawn. I have to place one more seal into him," Hakurei says, walking towards the reanimated body. "My spell can only be complete when I finish placing the seal inside of you; Can't have you acting for yourself now."

"Get away from my brother!" Sasuke lunges at Hakurei, drawing forth Decalogue. Hakurei releases compressed air from the palm of his hand, blowing the young swordsman to the ground.

"It's useless! Don't get in my way, stupid kid! You want to destroy Konoha, right?" Hakurei grabs Itachi and forces him down on one knee.

"Sasuke, think about what you really want. Stop thinking about our family for a moment and think of what you desire!" Itachi shouts to his brother.

"I... I...!" Sasuke begins, standing back up. "I WANT TO BREAK THIS HORRID CHAIN OF FATE!"

Sasuke suddenly releases a large amount of chakra. It converts to darkness and blows away Hakurei. He stands back up and glares at him. "What the hell?"

"I won't let my brother be used again! Even if I have to side with Konoha, I'll break the chain of fate!" Sasuke screams, darkness releasing from his body and taking form. The darkness molds into Susanoo, before it melds into his body and turns his skin black and purple. A blood red helmet forms on his head and his hair turns silver.

"Sasuke?"

"I don't remember the Sharingan having this ability," Hakurei says, still surprised to see this. He summons his purple armor over his body, just in time for Sasuke to lunge at him. Sasuke swings, chipping off some of his armor with that one strike. The sword transforms, turning into a pure black broadsword. On each side are lines forged in to resemble the kanji for darkness, Yami.

"I will amend the Uchiha family, my own way! I won't be guided by anyone else anymore!" Sasuke grabs hold of the middle of the blade, and it forms into a bow. He pulls onto the string, forming an arrow, and fires. It flies towards Hakurei, and darkness explodes off of him on contact. Hakurei's armor is stripped off, revealing him to be a skeleton.

"You!" Hakurei holds his hand out and disappears, taking Itachi with him.

"Nii-sama!" Sasuke runs to where they vanished, his new sword and form wearing off. He looks down at his free hand, thinking about what just happened. "Was that a new power?"

...

In the forest of Amegakure, all is quiet at the moment. A rabbit strolls into an opening, its fur white due to the lack of sun. Before it could do what it planned to do, the sound of mechanisms roars in the distance, scaring the poor creature away. Far south east of the forest the members of Konoha and Suna continue through, with their weapons, machines, and soldiers ready for battle. North west the soldiers of Ame and Iwa come down to face against them.

On their front lines stand the cyborg warriors of Akatsuki; Hidan, Kakuzu, Deidara, Sasori, Itachi, Kisame and Zetsu. Naruto takes a moment to look at them, and gasps when he realizes who they are.

"They're alive?" he shouts in shock.

"It's our world, remember," Minato tells him.

"Oh yeah... Where's Konan though?" Naruto asks, looking around for the paper goddess. "I don't smell her or Nagato anywhere?"

"If you're referring to the blue haired woman then I'm not sure. She would usually be giving out strategic orders..." Kakashi answers, causing Naruto to sigh. "Have you met her before?"

"...Let's just get this over with," Naruto says, forward into the battlefield.

"Naruto, wait!" Minato is about to charge after his son, but they all spread out to avoid war then begins, with soldiers from each side firing against their enemy.

Naruto continues running straight ahead, releasing wind from all around him to expel their bullets. "I'll finish this quickly! Without the leader Madara, they can't do anything!"

He punches a soldier in the face and steals his gun. He uses magnetism and attaches it to his left foot, flying off into the distance. The red haired woman shoots down an enemy, her eyes going to Naruto. She then says in her ear-phone communicator, "I'll go ahead," and chases after Naruto.

"Kushina, wait!" Minato shouts out to her.

Naruto continues flying, until he spots a moving land fortress just up ahead. He flies down to it, landing on top. Using his electric powers Naruto enters the stronghold, landing inside. He clenches his right fist, summoning electricity, before sniffing around. "Why isn't is a flying fortress? I mean, wouldn't it be better for it to be able to fly?"

He follows the scent further into the stronghold, keeping his guard up. Soon a group of soldiers show up and prepare to fire at him, but he steals their weapons with electromagnetism. Realizing who he is they run away.

"Takes care of that..." he mutters, continuing his search.

"Getsuga Tenshou!" A black stream of energy cuts through a metal door to his right. He spots two people coming out, who he recognizes immediately; Naruto Kazama and Kaimuto Namikaze.

"You guys?" Naruto shouts in shock.

"Oh, you came too?" Kaimuto asks him.

"You didn't happen to have a kunai stick to you somehow, right?" Black asks him.

"...Actually yeah..." Naruto takes out the kunai that stuck him, and brought him to this place. "Let me guess; you were doing another experiment right?"

"I was trying to make kunai that could take one to specific places in alternate universes, not just at random!" Black explains, taking back his kunai. He then smiles sheepishly. "Although, it might have been better to only make one."

"Don't make anymore of these again!" Kaimuto tells him.

"Yeah, yeah..."

"Why are you guys in this place though?" Naruto asks them.

"We came here when we heard Akatsuki had taken the world over. Neither of us could look away from what they did, in this world and ours," Kaimuto tells him.

"Well thanks for dropping by! Let's go kick this guy's ass!" Naruto says, clenching his fist tightly.

"Oh!" They each shove their fists in the air. Black takes off first, heading through a doorway. Kaimuto and Naruto follow after him. As he does he clutches his chest in pain, and a rainbow glow illuminates from him.

Up ahead a group of soldiers come towards them, all carrying weapons. Naruto reaches his left hand out, and using electromagnetism steals their weapons. Black rushes in and slashes through them with relative ease. Kaimuto checks their behind, and knocks out anyone who tries to get back up.

In front of them is now a giant steel door. Naruto sniffs the air, and picks up what he thinks is Madara, saying, "I think this is it."

"Let's bust it down! Getsuga Tenshou!" Black lifts his sword and swings, cutting into the wall with a stream of black energy.

"Seeker Missile!" Kaimuto holds his right fist up and fires energy blasts.

"Tenryu no Rasengan!" Naruto collects wind into his palms and fires it off like a Hadouken. Their attacks bust down the door, or more likely tore it to pieces, and a cold wind blows out. Inside the Narutos could see that the place contains a giant machine with soldiers walking out of it.

"A manufacturing plant?" Kaimuto says, referring to the machine.

"Well look at what the cat dragged in!" A voice speaks. The trio turn around to see a towering 8 foot beast standing behind them. It's a charred golem with a skeleton shaped head. His eyes spiral with the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan and he holds a jagged scythe in his left hand.

"...Madara?" Black asks as he and the other three back up inside the room.

"When the scouters reported a blond haired teenager with the ability to use magic I was suspicious, but three Narutos?" Madara says, tossing a body to the ground. The Narutos look down at the body, and gasp in shock when it's Kushina.

"Mom!" Kaimuto runs to the woman's side, placing his right hand on her head and releasing a light pulse.

"Mom?" Black and Naruto say in unison.

"I picked that up on my way here," Madara says in a taunting manner.

"You idiot. Don't you recognize your mother?" Kaimuto tells them. Naruto's eyes widen in shock.

"My mom is Shizune," Black replies.

"That's... That's Kushina Uzumaki? My mother?" Naruto slowly walks over to the woman.

"I don't know who you imposters are, or why you've come, but I can kill you three just like him-"

"SHUT UP!" In a fit of rage, Naruto lunges at Madara and kicks him hard in the face, interrupting his sentence. When he did so his hair turns golden. He falls backwards, crashing onto the ground. Naruto then runs to his mother's side, lifting her head up. "Mom! Please say something!"

"Don't shake her!" Kaimuto warns him. The soldiers from behind begin their attack, coming at the ninjas in a sneak attack. Black fires Rasenhou, blowing them away.

Kushina begins to open her eyes, gathering the attention of the two Narutos. She looks into the eyes of Naruto, and smiles. "Naruto..."

"Mom! I'm sorry! I'm sorry I never said anything!" He cries, tears welling up in his eyes. "I've never known what you looked like; I'm sorry!"

"It's okay..." she says, placing a hand on his left cheek. "You're just as I imagined...Your hair turned yellow for an instant, but that's okay."

"Mom... I'm glad I could see you! I have so much to ask you!" Naruto says to her, hugging the woman tightly.

"...I'm glad..." she whispers in his ears, before passing out. Naruto lays her on the ground, and faces Madara.

"White me, I want you to heal mom. I'll finish this guy myself," he says, clenching his left fist tightly. "...I finally see my mother, and you do this to her... You won't be forgiven!"

"Enough impudence!" Molten rocks rise out from his body, and fire at Naruto. He forms Tenryu no Rasengan and uses its powerful wind to deflect them. Some hit the soldiers Black still has to fend off.

"Tenryu no Rasengan!" Naruto fires off the Rasengan as a stream of air, striking the golem. He simply walks forward, as if it doesn't affect him. "What?"

"Like wind can move rocks," he says, walking towards Naruto. He lifts his free fist up and punches down at him.

"Rairyu no Hoko!" Naruto blasts him with electricity, this time giving effect as it knocks him back. He then forms electricity around his hands, and delivers a double Kaminari Punch. "I'm not going to let you harm my loved ones anymore!"

"You know, the cyborg I remodeled when I captured you said the same thing before I made him my servant," Madara says with a laugh, standing back up. He then adjusts his head, cracking his neck. "Thanks for getting that crick out of my neck."

"...Damn it!" Naruto runs towards Madara, throwing a second thunder punch. Madara grabs his hand and slams him back into the ground. He then tosses Naruto into a wall, and releases a fireball from his mouth. Naruto lifts his arms up, and blocks the attack.

"Naruto!" Kaimuto calls out.

"Just heal mom! I'm fine!" he shouts back, emerging from the flames with part of his clothes burned off. He still owns an incredible look of anger on his face.

"Should you really be worried about yourself?" Madara taunts him.

"Just because you can't doesn't mean I shouldn't!" Naruto lunges at Madara, striking him with a normal Rasengan. The attack passes through him though, along with Naruto. Madara turns around and grabs Naruto, igniting him and his hand. Naruto screams out in pain.

"I'm going to enjoy remodeling you! I'll make an even better drone using you!" he says, tossing him into the air.

"You bastard! Katon: Rasenono!" Black forms a flaming Rasengan that forms four separate axe blades. He then tosses it to the ground, having it fly towards Madara. The attack grows larger as it grates against the ground, but it passes through him too. "Shit!"

The attack continues towards Naruto, causing an explosion on impact. Naruto falls to the ground, in pain from the numerous blows he took. Madara laughs. "Thanks to my time manipulation technology infused with this body, I can never be in any danger."

"Damn it!" Black grumbles in anger.

"You..." Naruto growls, standing back up. He glares at him, his body releasing a rainbow light from within his heart.

"What the?" - Black

"That light..." - Kaimuto

"Now what?" Madara grumbles in shock.

Naruto looks down at his chest and grabs hold of the light, feeling something solid. 'What is this? ...I see... This is...' Naruto draws the light out of his chest, and a light shaped as a sword can be seen in his hand.

'Manabu once told me; the moment I unlock a sword I can use them with complete knowledge of their abilities. '

"So this is what happened; I always wondered why he had two separate weapons that could each turn into ten swords... This is my tenth sword..." Naruto lifts the sword up into the air, and the light fades away to reveal the weapon. It's a guardless sword with a platinum tinted blade that has a rainbow gleam in the light. The tip of the blade is golden and curved to look like a boomerang. The hilt of the sword is of a golden color, with a gem at the cut off point that shines light blue like the Starlight Rave's.

Naruto turns to Madara and swings, releasing a tremendous wind that forces him back. It also blows away his subordinates, knocking them out. "Prepare to face the Rainbow Sky Sword - Rave Cielo!"

* * *

Yusei: This brings this chapter to an end.

Manabu: Next time, Naruto, Naruto and Kaimuto finish off Madara and leave for the Water Princess world. That's when they take part in another war, led by Hakruei/Madara. Also, we will be giving away the final portion of the Twilight Star featuring Rave Cielo and Starlight Rave.


	35. The Rainbow Sky Sword

**_Naruto and The Water Princess_**

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the other stuff. Let's see... One Piece, Fairy Tail, Static and there was one more... Rave!

Manabu: For the next two chapters, including this, Naruto and the Water Princess will be crossed over with Kamen Rider Shiki, another story I made.

_**Chapter 35: The Rainbow Sky Sword  
**_

* * *

Land of Fire...

A bright light stabs into the earth. Out from it falls what looks to be Naruto Uzumaki. He looks the same as the others, most especially the dragon slayer one, but this guy has blond spiky hair and no whiskers on his face. He also has a kunai sticking out of his neck and what looks like a compass in his hands.

"Ah, what happened?" Naruto asks himself as he pulls out the kunai in his neck. He takes a moment to look at it, noticing its three pronged design. "Where did this come from... Oh well, whatever it is, it did save me from that fall."

An explosion goes off to his left, gathering his attention. He stands up and to get a good look, and sees a giant red dragon with a drill for a right arm. It roars out to the skies and slams its right arm into the ground, rotating the drill as it does. An armored man, Hakurei, holds out his hand, causing the beast to cringe and stop. "So you know your task then, Omicron... Find Killer Bee and bring him here alive."

The dragon growls and flaps its wings, preparing to take flight. Hakurei smirks as he prepares to leave, and vanishes into thin air. Naruto mutters, "He's gone!"

Omicron however heard him and glances over at the boy. The dragon spits a fire ball at Naruto, who runs out of the way. He rolls over and stands, holding out his compass. He presses the button on it, turning the needle east. Naruto then places the compass on his waist, which extends a belt around his body and reattaches to the other side. Putting a hand on the switch installed at the right side of the device, he holds the other hand over his face, saying, "Henshin!"

Back To The Alternate War World...

Naruto turns to Madara and swings, releasing a tremendous wind that forces him back. It also blows away his subordinates, knocking them out. "Prepare to face the Rainbow Sky Sword - Rave Cielo!"

Black takes a step back away, avoiding the powerful wind. "Wow. That's a rather sharp blade you got there."

"It's nothing more than just a sword..." Madara says, forming a giant ball of flame in his mouth. He then fires at him, but Naruto cuts it down using the Phantom Sword. "What?"

"No, it's nothing more than ten swords!" Naruto replies, dashing towards Madara. Black rushes him from behind, prepared to use Getsuga Tenshou.

"Getsuga Tenshou!" Madara turns intangible, allowing the power of darkness to pass through him. Naruto dodges by sliding by, and stabs forward at the golem. The sword passes through him, and Madara jumps over them. He lands behind the dragon slayer and swings, forcing him to block using his blade. Black jumps on his shoulders and slashes the top of his skull, chipping off stone and blood.

"Damn you!" Madara reaches out and grabs Black, and his body begins to convert. Black takes out a three pronged kunai and tosses it to the doorway, and disappears towards its path. Naruto then stabs at Madara's chest, piercing into him.

Madara laughs again at Naruto, knowing he turned invisible with his power. But suddenly he feels a weird sensation; looking down at his chest he feels a weird liquid oozing throughout his body. "What the hell is this?"

"The Antimatter Sword: Sakasa Ace. It's a sword that supports living matter and destroys antimatter. Your intangible ability is useless against this sword." Naruto draws back his blade, and it glows brightly. "This will seal you into a solid form! Ghost Slayer!"

Naruto forms a Jyuken Gattai with Tenchi and Sakasa Ace, and slashes Madara horizontally. The sword reverts to Rave Cielo. Madara clenches his fist and punches at Naruto, creating a hole in the ground. "You cretin! Why can't I use my powers?"

"Ghost Slayer combines the Antimatter Sword and the Phantom Sword to form a blade that seals away the magic, or chakra, of anyone it cuts for several seconds. You're not disappearing anymore," Naruto says, slashing at Madara's neck. Chunks of bloody stones fall from his neck as he collapse to his knees. "You!"

Black forms a Rasengan in one hand, and Kaimuto forms his own in his right hand. He then lays Kushina down and jumps up at Madara. Together they strike Madara in the back, pummeling him into the ground. As he crashes to the ground, they hear someone running up to them, and spot Minato with a gun approaching them.

"Kushina! Naruto! I-Naruto?" Minato stops to look at the collection of Narutos in the room. He notices Kushina down by the floor, and runs to her side. "What's going on?"

"Don't ask," Kaimuto replies, clawing Madara's face. "Take mom and run. We'll finish this."

"Got it." Minato lifts his wife up and runs off with her.

Madara manages to get on one knee, and glares at the dragon slayer Naruto. He grips Rave Cielo with both hands and takes a deep breath, his eyes turning green and his skin turning into scales. A yellow light releases from the gem, converting from blue to the respective color. He then takes a quick step at Madara and stabs him in the chest, a brief burst of golden energy jetting out and slicing through his body.

"It's over Madara. This is my third time beating you, but my anger still hasn't subsided," Black says, resting his sword over his shoulder.

"No, it's not over yet..." Madara grumbles, slapping Naruto off of him towards the duplication machine remains. Tiny fractures form on his body as he stands full on two feet. He drops his weapon and growls. "I can still take you all with me!"

"What?" Naruto stands back up after that knock down, pulling up some chains his sword was caught in.

Kaimuto's eyes scan Madara's body with the Hibikigan, and gasps when he sees something. "He's going to blow this place up."

"What? But I sealed his chakra away!" Naruto says to him.

"It's not chakra. This entire fortress will self-destruct, taking you and everyone inside of this place with us," he says, laughing maniacally. Madara punches through his stomach, and pulls out a cylindrical mechanic item. He then presses the button on the switch, and collapses to the ground.

"The ship will explode in 30 seconds. You have five seconds to exit the building before the doors close," the voice says, and soon the doors close with them still inside. Minato and Kushina manage to make it out just in time.

"Oh great, what now?" Naruto asks his counterparts.

"I have an idea; we'll use the three pronged kunai to skip to another dimension!" Black says, taking out one of his kunai.

"That again? Can you really control where we'll go?" Naruto asks him.

"It's okay, I got it under control now. Grab onto me!" At his words Kaimuto and Naruto run towards him. They then jump onto him, and he injects chakra into his kunai. It vanishes into a pillar of light, taking them along with it. Just as they leave the fortress explodes, killing Madara and ending his reign of terror.

Minato and Kushina manage to make it a safe distance away from the fortress, before it explodes. "Naruto..."

Some Other World...

Naruto one, two and three fall to the ground jumbled up together, landing in a plain of soft grass. Naruto Uzumaki the dragon slayer stands up and begins to pull the chains he brought with his sword off of him. His dragonforce has also worn off, evident with his eyes. "Well, that's over with."

"I still think you should get rid of that damn kunai. Just how many flew off?" Kaimuto says, turning to the black moon fox.

"Well, let's see..." Black gets on his knees and begins counting. While he talks Naruto takes off his jumpsuit and wraps it around his new blade, attaching the chains to it with the kunai he has and electricity to manufacture a sheath. "I made five, I caught one, the second kunai got me offguard and sent me to some world. The third one got you, and then the fourth transported the new guy... That leaves one left."

"One left huh... I'd hate to be the guy who got transported by that," Kaimuto says as he crosses his arms. His thoughts then go to his mother, and he says, "I hope mom is okay."

"I do too..." Naruto says as he finishes his new sheath. He attaches the chains together and wrap them around his body, having the sword hang tilted right over his rear. "Now to find out where we are."

Kaimuto spots a group of ninjas fighting far off to the side, his eyes in the Hibikigan stance having picked it up. He points to the area, where Naruto and Black glance ahead and sees a battle going on. Black shouts, "What the?"

A group of Zetsu clones are battling against ninjas from Kumo, Konoha and Kiri. Siding with the clones are several demons too. Naruto takes a good look and gasps when he sees Haku fighting against a dragon while clad in ice armor. Taking a moment to look at the other ninjas, he begins to realize where they are. "This is my world!"

"Really?" Kaimuto asks.

"Huh, how lucky were we?" Black says with a chuckle.

One of the Zetsus notices the Narutos watching, and throws kunais at him. He deflects them using electromagnetism, and then runs into battle. Black and Kaimuto follow him, using the Rasengan to take down two clones. Naruto throws a large ball of electricity that vaporizes the one who attacked him.

"Haku!" Naruto then runs towards Haku, kicking the dragon he's fighting away. He then tosses him away, and goes to his friend Haku. "Haku, are you okay?"

"Naruto? Is that you?" he asks, looking up at his friends face. Naruto nods, and he replies, "Where have you been? I heard you were captured by Akatsuki!"

"I was... But thanks to those guys I escaped," he says, blasting the returning dragon with a gust of wind. He then points to the other Narutos helping, causing Haku to gawk. "They're me from alternate universes... But anyway, what's going on?"

"...Well, aside from seeing two extra yous-" Haku begins, standing up to his feet. "-Madara, er Hakurei, has declared war on the Shinobi nation."

"Eh?"

"He suddenly appeared at the summit of the Gokage and declared war on us after telling us to hand over you and Killer Bee. When Tsunade and the others refused he declared war. Now we're battling his minions, and looking for where he could be hiding," Haku explains, telling Naruto of what has happened.

"Tsunade? She's out of her coma?" he asks, shocked to hear she's back.

"Yes. She recovered just after Hanzou was murdered by this man in golden garbs. He said he wanted to know where you were." Naruto looks off to the side thinking about who this person could be. Now that he thinks about it, Rouki did mention someone named Long was searching him out. "What will we do now?"

"I'm going to look for Madara. Once I beat him this will all end," Naruto says, picking up several kunai with his electromagnetism. He then melds them together to form a saucer, and hops aboard.

"You go ahead, I'll wait here," Haku says, extending the Sea Lancer to become a gun.

"Good luck." Naruto flies off into the skies, before coming back to land and soaring through the army of demons. He draws Rave Cielo and cuts through them, slaying the beasts with one slash. Black hangs underneath the saucer and Kaimuto hops on Naruto's back.

Before leaving, Honatsu stands in their way. Naruto flies around him, escaping his path. "You're not getting away."

Haku fires a water spear that slashes the top of his right shoulder. Honatsu's attention turns to him, as the ice user says, "Your opponent is me."

"...Fine by me," he replies, forming flames around his body. He then dashes at the ice user, and everyone around them stops fighting.

Haku fires more water spears, which evaporate before even reaching him. His armor begins to melt off too, just showing how intense the heat is. He ducks underneath a punch and jabs Honatsu in the stomach before jumping away. "Why are you fighting anyway? Aren't you with Sasuke?"

"I work for whoever is the strongest. That is all I've ever known," Honatsu replies to him.

"I see. Then I'll just show you I'm stronger," he says, forming an ice blade. He then extends it and pierces Honatsu's left leg. His flames melt it, but Haku continues running towards him. He forms an ice mirror by his feet and ducks underneath into it. The ice mirror slides towards Honatsu and splits in half. The mirrors then form beside him, and duplicate to create the Crystal Ice Mirrors.

"Karyu no Supernova!" Honatsu releases flames from his body to make an explosion, blowing away the ice mirrors and melting them. Haku escapes from one shard outside of his armor, and forms a water blade on the Sea Lancer.

"Crossplosion!" Haku spins his weapon over his head towards the right and swings, slashing and creating a wave of water that douses Honatsu. He then forms the Rasengan and slams it in his stomach. The fire dragon is sent flying towards a tree, busting through it.

"...You will never be stronger than me!" Honatsu roars as flames explode from his body. "Karyu no Hoko!"

Haku forms an ice mirror, but the fire melts straight through and burns Haku. He crashes to the ground, as Honatsu comes charging at him, preparing a Tekken. Haku turns the Sea Lancer into gun mode and fires three shots of water; one douses the flames in his fist, the second hits him in the face and the last gets his chest. Honatsu falls to his knees, coughing hard. "Mizu Tatsumaki!"

Haku fires water at the ground, causing it to rise and expand into a miniature lake. The ice user then transmutes his gun into a lance again, before holding it up into the air. Water gathers around the blade from all around him and he swings down hard, trapping the fire dragon inside.

Honatsu releases fire in an attempt to convert it into steam. "I'll easily blow away this little bathtub of water."

"Taste this!" Haku rushes through the water tornado towards Honatsu, forming a blade of ice. Honatsu spots him and prepares himself.

"Metsuryu Ougi: Guren Bakuenjin!(Dragon Slayer Secret Technique: Crimson Lotus Explosion Flame Blade)" Honatsu dashes at Haku, using all of his chakra to form a curved fire blade to match along his fingers.

"Subarashii V Giri!(Splendid V Cut)" Haku's blade forms a V shape at the edge before he slashes, instantly freezing the water around them and encasing Honatsu in ice. His fire move freezes along with it. The ice attack is so strong it even changes the weather, making it colder than an Alaskan night. "Have a good night.

"V Slash!" Haku slashes in a V formation, shattering Honatsu to pieces. He then turns back to the other demons and clones, who run off in seeing their strongest warrior defeated.

Back with the Naruto trio they continue through the fields of the Shinobi Nations. The dragon slayer continues sniffing the air, searching for Hakurei. 'I can remember his scent, but I can't seem to find him. I guess him and his teleporting power makes it kind of hard.'

"Naruto, look out!" Kaimuto says, pushing the dragon slayer off to the side. A giant wolf comes lunging at them, but misses thanks to Kaimuto's prediction. The three Narutos crash and roll along the ground, coming to a painful stop.

On top of the wolf stands the Anubis class demon Mizuki. Naruto Kazama stands first, despite being hurt the most from the fall, and draws his sword. Kaimuto and Naruto stand next, preparing themselves for battle. Black then asks, "Who the hell is that guy?"

"It's Mizuki transformed into a demon by Madara. He can perform summonings," Naruto says to them.

"So, this is where you were. I was going to slay those humans over there," Mizuki says, turning to the ninjas fighting off an army of Renchu. "This is much more pleasuring."

"You think so..." Naruto draws Rave Cielo and hoists it over his shoulder.

Off to the battlefield Hinata picks up the Narutos being held up by Mizuki. She cries out, "Naruto!"

"Hinata?" Kaimuto and Naruto turn to the blue haired teenager.

"An opening!" The wolf lunges at them on Mizuki's command. Black leaps at the wolf, being the only one not distracted by Hinata, and slams a Rasengan in its nose. The other two turn their attention back to Mizuki, and Naruto releases Tenryu no Hoko on him.

Mizuki is blown into midair, before Black throws a kunai at him. He then flinches when he realizes that he threw one of his dimension hopping three pronged kunai. It sticks Mizuki, and transports him away, taking his summonings with him. "...Whoops!"

"Stop using those!" Kaimuto yells angrily, smacking Black in the back of the head with his left hand.

"Let's keep going. Madara is close by," Naruto says, sniffing the air around him. Before he could move Hinata runs up and hugs him. "Hinata?"

"Naruto! I'm so glad you're okay!" she says, smiling as she looks at him. Hinata looks up at him with a smile, tears beginning to form. "Thank goodness!"

"Hinata... I'm sorry if I made you worry," he says, hugging her back. "Look, I'm going after Madara."

"What? No, he's too strong!" she says, showing worry for him.

"I can do this by myself!" Naruto places his right hand onto his neck, releasing an extremely small electric pulse through her body, knocking her out. "Sorry, Hinata."

Naruto lays her on the ground softly and says, "Someone take care of Hinata!"

A Mizu ninja comes to her and helps her over his shoulder. Naruto can see that it's Kenta, who nods as Naruto takes off. He hops aboard his saucer and takes off, the other two ninjas joining him. Naruto continues flying through the air in search of Madara. But just as quick as they left their traveling stops; soon they're flung through the air crashing into the ground.

Naruto lands, Kaimuto falls on his butt, and Black hits his head. Naruto then sniffs the air, noticing the smell of chicken, snake, and sake. Walking down a path of paved dirt, Sheji walks towards them with a chuckle. "Hello, dragon-chicken yo. I'm here to take your head."

"Oh yeah, I forgot about him," Naruto says, remembering the time he saw the guy when Rouki challenged him. "You're that gravity guy, right?"

"Kuukandan!" Sheji throws a ball of condensed gravity at him, and he and the other two jump out of the way. Black and Kaimuto come rushing at him from both sides, but he easily repels them away. He then looks around for the dragon slayer. "Where did he go?"

"Rave Cielo!" Naruto shouts as he falls from the skies, holding his blade downward as he descends. He reaches the ground and stabs his sword down at Sheji. Unfortunately he jumps away to a far length and leaves him to stab the earth, busting up the ground and creating a crater larger than any lake. Debris from the ground comes flying up due to the impact. Naruto grits his teeth angrily as he looks around for the snake chicken, the Kyubi's chakra rising even more.

"I'm going to enjoy this!" Sheji descends towards Naruto, who jumps out of the way. His drop kick busts open a crater that Naruto stands at the edge of luckily. Just then the area around him begins to become heavy, pushing him to the ground. Kaimuto and Black are crushed as well. Sheji then laughs, before coughing suddenly. "That's right; you're the one who defeated Rouki, right? And just now you made Mizuki disappear. Let's get the air cleared about this; no one you've defeated thus far is stronger than me.

"Even if you manage to defeat me, you still have to face Hakurei, Magellan, and Long. And they're all stronger than I am!" Sheji laughs again, once again coughing at the end. The trio manage to get back to their feet, doing their best to resist his powers. Naruto though collapse to the ground, letting the gravity take full hold. "I guess you're not as strong as I figured. Take the entire dragon slayer clan with you to your grave!"

A giant fire ball comes from the skies and blasts Sheji, knocking him away. He rolls back to his feet, shouting, "What was that?"

The gravitational effects have left him, and Black and Kaimuto take action; Black swings and releases Getsuga Tenshou, while Kaimuto fires five Seeker Missiles. Sheji deflects them using his powers, having the attacks explode to the side. Another fireball comes down from the skies and blasts Sheji. He manages to survive it once again, and looks up to see who's shooting him.

In the glare of the sun a giant red dragon comes flying down to the earth. The drill on its right arm confirms it's Omicron. On the dragon's back though stands Naruto, shouting, "Yee haa," as he descends. The dragon lands before Sheji, growling at him, and Naruto jumps off. "Hey."

"Who the hell are you?" Sheji shouts as he looks at the fourth Naruto before his eyes.

The others are shocked as well. The dragon slayer Naruto stands up, and asks, "Are you Naruto?"

"Yeah, and-what the?" Naruto notices the other three hims just behind him. "I'm seeing triple!"

"What in the cock is going on here?" Sheji shouts as he looks at the four Narutos. "This can't be! What kind of messed up fanfiction is this? No, this is madness! No one is foolish enough to cross over four different Narutos into a single story! It's never been done!"

"What's he talking about?" DS Naruto asks the others. They all shrug.

"So, how did you get here?" Kaimuto asks the new Naruto.

"Well, this thing stuck me in the neck and brought me here," he says, holding up the three pronged kunai he found. On cue Kaimuto and DS smack Black in the back of the head. "Is it yours?"

"Yeah," he says, taking his kunai from Naruto. Black then turns to face Sheji, drawing his black blade. "Anyway, I'm not leaving until I defeat this dimension's Madara, no matter who he is."

"Who's Madara?" The new guy asks the Narutos, getting a shocked reaction out of them.

"Eh?" All three of them exclaim.

"No matter how many of you there are, I'll wipe you all off the face of reality!" Sheji says as he forms several balls of condensed gravity.

"This guy isn't going to be so easy," Kaimuto says as he forms energy around his arms.

"I'll deal with this guys! You go find that Madara guy," The new guy says to them.

"What? You?" DS asks in shock.

"Yeah. I specialize in kaijin like that guy." Naruto takes out the compass he had earlier, and places it on his waist. Performing the same stance, position, and arm/hand jesters as before he presses down on the button and slides his thumb down on the switch, saying, "Henshin!"

The device speaks, "Haru," and a makeshift clock appears before him. It passes through his body and transforms him as it does.

* * *

Julia: This brings an end to this chapter. And the next chapter of Water Princess will have Naruto turning into Kamen Rider Shiki and fighting Sheji single-handedly. The other three then find Madara, and the war finally comes to an end.

Manabu: And finally, we come to the end of the Twilight Star's information. Next chapter will showcase the information of the Jyuken Gattai, and what each sword is based on, but first some info; The tenth sword is a special Rainbow based blade that comes from the user. Since the Twilight Star was made thanks to Kenshin's rainbow copying powers, the sword itself absorbed that ability. After using the Soul Sword, and overcoming it, the sword will continue to release a rainbow mist around the user's body to forge a sword based on the data gathered. The mist is invisible to the user and others, so there's no way they would notice. Once the sword deems the user worthy of truly mastering it, the tenth sword springs from the user's body and replaces the original. The owner can then pass the original Twilight Star to another person worthy of using it, restarting the cycle, and the rebuilt swords will disappear when their owners die.

Naruto's 10th Sword: The Rainbow Sky Sword Rave Cielo  
Weapon: Excalibur  
Description: It's a guardless sword with a platinum tinted blade that has a rainbow gleam in the light. The tip of the blade is golden and curved to look like a boomerang. The hilt is a pure golden color with a gem in the middle of the guard.  
Abilities: The sword is powered by the energy Naruto utilizes, and the gem changes color to represent the ability. Blue is default and does nothing. Red is demon chakra and increases the user's sixth sense. Yellow is Dragonforce and lets the user call forth and release streams of golden energy. Green is Sage chakra and allows the user to summon extra blades in midair. Bringing all three together allows the user to bring each power together for a powerful strike that is close or long distance.  
Weakness: Each level draws out a certain amount of energy, and once utilized the user cannot return to the other nine forms without returning the gem's color to blue.

Manabu's 10th Sword: The Rainbow Star Sword Starlight Rave  
Weapon: Excalibur  
Description: It's a silver colored Excalibur with one pointed edge on the guard. It has a crystal blue gem in the middle of the guard with a cobalt wrapping around the hilt. Written along the blade on one side is the word light in cobalt.  
Abilities: The one guard is the key to the sword's abilities. One push will allow the user to release sword beams of white sparkling light. A second push added will allow the user to release a stronger sword beam capable of cutting the inside of whatever it passes through. The third and last push can call forth its strongest stream of energy, capable of cutting through blood, water, air, even the fabric of time and space. Whatever isn't made of living tissue will repair itself.  
Weakness: Each level draws out a certain amount of energy, and once utilized the user cannot return to the other nine forms without returning the gem's color to blue.


	36. Truth And Gold Rampage And Kamen Rider

**_Naruto and The Water Princess_**

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the other stuff. Let's see... One Piece, Fairy Tail, Static and there was one more... Rave!

Manabu: The crossover with Shiki and the Water Princess ends with this chapter.

_**Chapter 36: The Truth And The Gold Rampage And The Kamen Rider**_

* * *

"Yeah. I specialize in kaijin like that guy." Naruto takes out the compass he had earlier, and places it on his waist. Performing the same stance, position, and arm/hand jesters as before he presses down on the button and slides his thumb down on the switch, saying, "Henshin!"

"Haru!" The device speaks, and a clock appears before Naruto. The needle hand spins around until it reaches a full 360 and stops at the top. As the needle turns, Naruto's appearance changes as well. When the compass disappears, it reveals Naruto in his new appearance.

His helmet has bright red eyes with two compass needles on the top portion of the head just like antenna. His color scheme runs on green and black. His wrists each own a black band, similar to the green ones around his ankles. His muscular skin tone is present on his biceps that match his outfit's color scheme. A white scarf flows from him attached to his neck, just like most Showa Riders. He's seen it there before when he was training, so he ignores it.

Naruto holds his hand out and points at Sheji. "I'm bringing your season to an end."

"What the hell did you do to yourself, hen?" Sheji shouts as he fires Aidajuuouken at him. Naruto ducks underneath his attack and dashes in to punch him in the stomach. He then throws two more punches to his face and left shoulder, and spin kicks him into the gut in that order. That combination brings him to hand and knee.

"Shiki. Kamen Rider Shiki." Shiki's announcement of who he is surprises Sheji and the other three Narutos.

"What's that? Kamen Rider?" Black asks just for the hell of it.

"I sense wind, water and earth chakra coming from his body," Kaimuto says as he looks at the warrior.

"Kamen means mask, right?" DS asks the others.

"I've had enough of Narutos today!" Sheji forms a ball of gravity to fall down at them.

"Tenchi!" Naruto slashes the ball with the Sealing Sword, adding one charge to his blade.

Shiki then charges at Sheji, punching him and pushing the basilisk as he moves. He then shoves Sheji down to the ground. "Feel the power of space!"

"Not on my watch!" Shiki gathers wind to his left arm and punches him in the chest, busting the armor protecting him to pieces. There the Narutos could see a huge burn mark on his chest.

"That looks like a weakspot," Kaimuto says, examining the basilisk.

"Let's try it!" Shiki's right foot becomes shrouded in stones before he kicks Sheji in the chest, instantly causing him to bleed. Sheji backs away in pain, leaving Shiki to come up at him and roundhouse kick his face. Sheji steps back a bit even further, more of his blood coming down.

Shiki presses down on the button to his henshin device, and the needle goes downward(south). He then pulls down on the switch, and the device speaks, "Natsu," before the makeshift clock reappears and passes through him. His body changes to a summer theme; the black is replaced with orange and the green with red. The scarf remains the same though. He then jumps in the air at Sheji, rolling down the hill with him. The duo ends up with Sheji falling to the ground and Shiki holding him down. He then viciously punches Sheji in the face, flames heating up and increasing his punching hand.

Shiki punches him again, and a third time breaks off his face mask and causes blood to spill from his mouth. The fire rider continues punching him in the face, before Sheji shouts, "Aidahakke!"

Sheji repels Shiki from his body, sending the rider up into the air. Kaimuto watches with intrigue. "I see. That compass on his waist is the source of his power. It allows him to use his powers and changes them as his armor does."

"I'll crush you under absolute force, hen! Kuukandan!" Sheji fires at Shiki. When it reaches him the rider gathers flames to his feet and kicks it away. The sphere goes down over to Naruto Uzumaki.

"I got it!" He slashes it down, using Tenchi once again. At this point Shiki lands by Sheji. "Keep that guy busy for a while!"

"Got it!" Shiki spin kicks Sheji in the chest, leaving a burn mark on his chest once again. Naruto meanwhile transforms Tenchi into bow form, and draws an arrow. Shiki picks up a small kunai and holds it up into the air, saying, "Okay, just remember what the scroll said."

His scarf wraps around his kunai and changes it, turning the knife into a two bladed, red battle axe. He then swings, cleaving off Sheji's chest armor and leaving a trail of fire. Naruto then says, "Get down!"

He releases his arrow, firing it straight at Sheji. Shiki rolls out of the way, and the arrow pierces into Sheji's chest. He falls to his knees, grumbling, "My powers! I can't use them!"

"Tenchi's good in that department. Ghost Slayer has similar effects, but it works on even ghosts without the charges," he says, the sword reverting to Rave Cielo.

"Hey, shouldn't you guys be going after Madara?" Shiki asks them as he places his free hand on the switch.

"Oh yeah! Thanks for taking care of this!" Naruto says as he prepares to leave.

Before they could go anywhere, who else but Madara would show up before them out of no where? "I was wondering where the hell Omicron was, and here I find such a surprising situation."

"Madara!" Naruto shouts as he aims Omega Arts and fires a round at him. It passes through him though. At this point Naruto sees that in his left hand is Killer Bee unconscious. "Hey, let Killer Bee go!"

"Call me by my true name, Hakurei," he says, lifting the Hachibi over his shoulder. "But first, what's going on, Omicron?"

"Oh, the dragon?" Shiki asks as he turns to him. "I fought that guy and got him to listen to me."

_Flashback..._

_"Haru," the device speaks as Naruto transforms into Shiki. Omicron roars and charges at him, the drill on his arm rotating at high speed. Shiki jumps over it and hops on his head, before jumping off and kicking back at his head._

_Shiki lands on the ground and turns to face Omicron, who swings his drill horizontally to catch him. Shiki gets smacked into a boulder, and the dragon gives chase. He leaps forward and punches the dragon in the face, causing it to miss with his drill and pulverize the boulder to pieces. He presses down on the button after landing and slides down on the switch, transforming into his power form. Omicron's tail stabs at Shiki, who gets struck in the face._

_The dragon then turns around and jabs at Shiki's waist. He jabs his left knee into the drill, stopping it from reaching that spot. Sparks fly from his knee as he holds it back. "So, you've figured out the Shipass is where my powers come from. You're smarter than you look."_

_Shiki pushes his drill back and grabs hold of it with both arms, stopping it with his massive strength. The rider then groans as he lifts him up into the air, tossing the red beast up and away. The fire user's next move leads him to pressing the button three times and sliding down on the switch, returning to his Haru form. "Do you want to continue?"_

_Omicron flies at Shiki, who slides down on the slot once more. The switch returns it its position, and water, earth and wind energy release from within. The device speaks, "Break Limit," and all three forces gather at his left foot. Shiki then flips back and kicks him in the stomach. The dragon falls to the ground, growling in pain from that hissatsu waza. "Rave Strizer... Maybe I should give that a better name."_

_Shiki walks over to the dragon and pets his skull. "Sorry I had to do that, but you went and attacked me. I had to be a hero and beat you down. Do you want to fight some more?"_

_Still clutching his stomach, Omicron glares at Shiki and shakes his head from side to side. Shiki removes his device and reverts to Naruto, and rubs his stomach. After Omicron feels a little better, Naruto asks, "Would you like to come with me? I could use some help looking around this world."_

_Omicron nods, and grabs Naruto. He places the boy on his back and begins to stand up. "Let's get going!"_

_End Flashback..._

"He doesn't want to work with you anymore, so beat it!" Shiki says to Hakurei.

"Hmph, who would have thought someone like you could convince him to change his mind," Hakurei says before summoning his double axe. He then spins his weapon, releasing a hurricane that captures Shiki. "Omicron is nothing more than a beast who used to live as a dragon slayer. He was transformed by using the Joutenryu no Hoko, and succumbed to eating flesh. Eventually this turned him into the monster you see, my servant!"

"What?" Shiki asks as he tries to overcome the wind attack.

"I got it!" Naruto jumps into the hurricane and begins to devour it. He then burps and smirks, but then he suddenly falls to his knees. He spits up blood, which contains a hint of purple. "What's this horrible taste?"

"I knew you would eat my attack, so I added a poison element to it," Hakurei says as he fires a purple lightning bolt at him. Shiki and Naruto jump out of the way. "You won't be able to survive any of my attacks."

"Getsuga Tenshou!" Black releases his signature attack at Hakurei, who blocks using his double axe spear. "Don't forget we're here!"

"I am too!" Kaimuto punches using his left arm, but only dents his armor. Hakurei then blows them away using his wind power.

"You fools cannot stand up to me! I don't care how many Narutos there are!" Hakurei says as he summons a ball of poison electricity and throws it at Naruto.

Shiki uses Rave Strizer to kick it away, having it blow up on the side of a mountain. "Are you done whatever you're doing?"

"Huh?" Hakurei looks at Naruto, and notices the extra energy coming to his body. He opens his eyes and reveals his Sage Mode status. "Sage Mode, huh?"

"You want to kill me, right? Can you really afford to and lose the rest of the Kyubi's chakra?" Naruto threatens him, adding said chakra to Sage Mode.

"I've already sucked all but 5 percent from you. All that's left is Killer Bee and the Hachibi! I don't need you anymore!" he bellows, releasing another one of his spear tornadoes.

"I'll blow you away!" Naruto places Rave Cielo in his mouth and dashes at Hakurei, grabbing hold of him and crashing into the ground. Hakruei grabs his leg and uses his teleportation powers to disappear with him.

"Naruto!" Black calls out.

"They didn't go far. Let's follow them," Kaimuto says as he prepares to use his power to track them. Sheji manages to get back up and attack Shiki. He kicks him in the stomach and pushes him back.

"You guys go. I'll hold this bum off!" Shiki says as he faces the demon.

"Wait here so we'll take you back!" Black says before he runs off with Kaimuto.

"If I had my powers I would waste you in seconds!" Sheji shouts as he runs up to punch Shiki in the face. Shiki blocks with his hands and pushes him back. "Why did you come here anyway?"

He then presses the button on the Shipass three times and slides the slot down, returning to his Haru form. He holds his right hand up and forms a Rasengan, only this one is much different from the last one he made; it's composed of wind chakra, water chakra, and earth chakra, and swirling together to resemble the earth from space.

"Riders should help people, right? We're pretty much heroes," Shiki tells him, before he dashes at Sheji. The rider then slams his Rasengan into Sheji's most wounded area, and the Rasengan spirals until it surrounds the basilisk fully. Sparks fly from his body as he suffers numerous wounds, before being flung down the hill towards a lake. Sheji crashes into the water, the Rasengan having left him.

Sheji tries his best to stand back up, those sparks from earlier going through him. His body is soon caught giving off small explosions, just like tokusatsu, and he says, "I confess! I'm not a basilisk! I'm a cockatrice!"

"...So?" Shiki walks off as he falls to one knee.

"Why do I have to die like this?" Those were his final words before he crashes to the ground, screaming before turning into a humongous explosion.

After the smoke clears Shiki removes his belt and returns to being Naruto. "Why do they always explode? Did Michael Bay write this crossover?"

With Naruto and Hakurei...

Hakurei reappears by a large body of water. Naruto falls into the water, his two chakras still present inside of him. After resurfacing he looks up at Hakurei and asks, "Where the hell did you bring me?"

"Amegakure." Hakurei answers him. He then tosses Killer Bee away, to the only spec of land nearby. "This is where it all began; Akatsuki's creation, where I first met Nagato and Konan, and millions of years ago where I stood at my throne."

"Throne?" Naruto swims over to dry land, and shakes the water off like a dog.

"I used to be the king of all demons, every last one of them. But that was when I met him; a pathetic lovesick dragon. He wanted to defeat me to prove himself to the water princess and win her hand in marriage, by taking my title as the demon king. I underestimated him and lost, and that's when things went bad for me," Hakurei explains, removing his helmet to reveal his skull head and glowing red eyes.

"Okay, I've heard that title a few times right now. Who is this water princess?" Naruto asks him, lifting Rave Cielo over his shoulder.

"You should know, but then again I doubt she would tell you," he says, chuckling a bit. "The water princess is a water dragon spirit, but she was treated as a princess amongst all of them. The dragon ruler wanted to take her as his wife, but she was so beautiful all men who approached the woman were wrapped around her finger. She was also a brat who had no interest in marriage, so she continuously used the men who proposed to her to compete and do outrageous things. She made the dragon ruler fight me, and still refused to marry him. She fell in love with this foolish half human, which led to her suicide, but years later she reincarnated as a human and regained all of her memories.

"Her name then and now is Mei." Hakurei's last sentence shocks the red haired dragon slayer. "You know her as Mei Terumi, your beloved fiance."

"...You got to be kidding me... Mei is..." Naruto begins to think about it more. That's when it all comes together. This Long person, the warning Rouki gave him, and Yusei's suffering; they were all caused by Long, Mei and this guy from the past. All of this is because Long wanted Mei to himself. "I see... But, what does that have to do with me?"

"Why don't you ask him yourself, in hell? After I revive the Juubi I'll use it to kill Long and get what I want," he says, firing a poisonous lightning bolt at Naruto. He swings his blade and cuts it apart. "Like I said, I don't need you anymore."

"Break Genkai... Naruto Uzumaki!" Naruto charges at Hakurei, running along the water's surface. His free hand gathers wind around the palm, having it take the form of Rasen Shuriken.

"Tenryu no Rasen Shuriken!" Naruto throws his powerful attack at Hakurei.

"End Waltz!" Hakurei twirls his spear axe and releases a poison hurricane at Naruto's move, causing the shuriken to divert its course and crash into the sea. Naruto then leaps onto his armored body and stabs down, switching to Shining Angelus. The solar sword melts into the steel armor, appearing out the other side from under his chest.

"I win!" Naruto says as he tears down with his sword. Hakurei simply jabs Naruto in the stomach with his weapon, sending him away. Naruto lands in the water. He resurfaces with a bloody stomach and asks, "What the hell? Why are you still alive?"

"Unfortunately for you, I have no organs. They're all jabbed in my skull. That's part of the Skelgar tribe's evolution," he replies, sending a poison gas at Naruto.

"Tenryu no Hoko!" Naruto blows them away and then dives below the surface. Underwater Naruto prepares a Rasengan, having its swirling power generate a whirlpool. Hakurei flies away to a higher position. Naruto then draws forth Omega Arts and shoots from inside the whirlpool at the armored demon.

"You can't hurt me if you continue doing stuff like that." With that statement the bullet passes through him. He then disappears, doing his teleportation thing.

'He can be hit with the Antimatter sword the moment he tries it again. But if I get the timing wrong he'll be super charged.' Naruto looks around in search of the skeleton. He spins around with Rave Cielo, forming green blades in midair. They each fly into a different direction.

One manages to be deflected for some odd reason, and that gives off a smirk for Naruto. He then leaps into that direction after him. "Jyuken Gattai!"

"You!" Hakurei raises his weapon and blocks the sword slash, but a black explosion consumes him. Naruto motions his feet to twirl, and makes another explosive strike.

Naruto continues this four more times, the last one ending with a bigger one, and him shouting, "Lunar Napalm!"

Hakurei comes out of the smoke with parts of his armor torn off. His helmet suffered too, revealing the left half of his face. "That move was effective."

"Eh?" Hakurei fires a poison lightning bolt at Naruto, sending him away. He rolls over the ground, dropping Rave Cielo.

"End Waltz!" Hakurei slams Naruto to the ground with his poison hurricane, his sword falling out of his hand. The skeleton king looks down at him, who slowly begins to stand back up. Naruto glares at Hakurei and growls, the shockwave of his voice blowing away some of the water and even silencing the rain. His hair also turns gold, the other marks of the three chakras in his body disappearing, except for his green eyes, and a golden veil appears around him. Hakurei then laughs, saying, "There's the effect I was looking for."

Wind gathers on his right hand, forming a crooked blade made of wind. He then lunges at Hakurei, landing on his shoulders and grabbing hold of his face through the sockets. Hakurei pushes the dragon off, and sends a miniature hurricane at him. A ball of electricity forms at his left leg before Naruto flip kicks and sends it flying at him. The wind blows away the electric ball, and strikes Naruto before knocking him into the ground.

Naruto opens his mouth and roars, releasing Tenryu no Hoko. Hakurei tries to blow the wind away, but gets sent flying into the sea. He then lunges into the air, using the wind to carry him all the way to Hakurei. Upon reaching the armored skeleton, Naruto slashes and tears through Hakurei, ripping out steel and some bone. Hakurei blows him away with wind, but only for a few feet. After he stops sliding Naruto gets on all four and dashes at Hakurei while blowing Rairyu no Hoko.

"I see... He's stronger than I thought when he's like this..." Hakurei holds up his spear to block the lightning, but it only destroys part of it. Naruto jumps onto Hakurei's shoulders once more, punching him square in the face through the opening in his helmet. Naruto continues punching, busting up the other side of the helmet too.

Hakurei grabs the boy and tosses him away, but he pulls off the rest of his helmet as he flies away. Naruto throws his helmet away and crawls at Hakurei, snarling angrily. Before he could reach him, a black stream of energy travels in between them. Black can be seen running up to them beside Kaimuto. "Naruto!"

Kaimuto notices Rave Cielo sitting off to the side, and grabs it using his enlarging left hand. "Naruto, catch!"

Unaware of his condition, Kaimuto tosses the blade to him. Naruto growls through clenched teeth and jumps up to grab it, and his eyes regain their focused look. He then looks down at his hands, remembering what he did just a few moments ago. "The Rainbow Sky Sword... It suppressed some of my powers..."

"Hey, his hair is blond again," Black says, taking note of Naruto's new appearance.

"I noticed. Let's just finish this guy," Kaimuto says before he gathers energy to his fists.

Black dashes at Hakurei, slabbing him. But his blade passes through harmlessly. "Again?"

"But I was hitting him earlier with ease..." Naruto says as he looks at Hakurei. He then stares down at his sword, and grips it with both hands. "I see... There's a time limit."

"A time limit, huh..." Black pulls his blade back and releases Getsuga Tenshou at him. Hakurei remains still as it passes through him harmlessly, and then blows a poison hurricane at him.

"So what if there is? It's such a short one you won't know when you can hit me!" As Hakurei talks, Kaimuto sneaks up on him and turns his left hand into claws. He then stabs Hakurei in the back, piercing his spinal cord. Hakurei turns around to face Kaimuto, smiling with his skinless mouth. "Like I said, there's no way you can stop me."

"Ghost Slayer!" Both Black and Kaimuto dive to the ground, as Naruto swings his enormously long blade around to slash Hakurei by the midsection. Naruto's blade reverts to Rave Cielo.

Hakurei falls down to his knees, gritting his teeth angrily. Of course, since he has no skin it already looks like he is. "Inconceivable... I didn't think you could use a gattai again so soon!"

"Rave Cielo has enhanced the limitations; now you can't run away," Naruto says, hoisting his blade over his shoulder. He places his free hand's index finger onto the gem of his sword, and the colors red, yellow and green pile up in that order.

Black forms dark vapors to release from his sword as he stands up to dash at Hakurei. As he runs he spits up blood, his heart pounding hard. Naruto lifts his sword up into the air, energy gathering at the edges. Kaimuto jumps away in time for Black to coem rushing in. He slashes, cutting straight through Hakurei. "Getsuga Tenshou; Ittou Ryoudan."

"Rising Ultimate Crush!" Kaimuto lands and dashes at Hakurei, punching him twice and leaving burning marks on his body.

"Rave Cielo: Twilight Finallusion!" Naruto slashes diagonally, slicing through him like a hot knife through butter.

The trio then regroup together and hold their hands next to one another. A pure Rasengan forms in between their palms, creating an inner shell of swirling chakra and an outer shell passing through their hands like lightning. They then dash towards Hakurei; Black's left hand, Kaimuto's right and both of Naruto's together.

"Rasengan!" All three Narutos slam the Rasengan into what's left of Hakurei's body. The swirling chakra begins to slowly erase his body, consuming Hakurei and ripping off all but his head to particles. Hakurei's skull lands to the ground, being all that's left of him.

"You bastard humans! Dealing with one Naruto was bad enough..." Hakurei complains, almost as if he didn't just see his body ripped apart.

"Tell me!" Naruto shouts at him, lifting up the skull and looking at him dead in the eyes. "Tell me why Long wants to kill me! What the hell does this have to do with you sending the Kyubi to my home?"

"Meh, I might as well tell you," Hakurei says, looking off into the distance. "I sent the Kyubi to your home to kill the last of the dragon slayers... That was a lie. Your mother didn't know this, infact no one did, but the Kyubi was sealed and suppressed inside of her body long before she could access her powers, by me."

"What?"

"I believed if she could combine the energies of demon chakra with Dragonforce that would unlock an even greater force for her to battle against Long and kill him. It also had a negative effect on her, giving her body what she believed to be tuberculosis," Hakurei explains to him, making Naruto even more angry. "I had kept this a secret from Long, along with all of my plans. I even kept quiet about your heritage from him, and used Akatsuki to mold you into the killing machine that would fight Long. I even collected the Juubi's remnants to revive him through you, and sent you memories of him through the Kyubi so you would feel destined to fight Long."

"Why? Why are you so obsessed with killing Long?" Kaimuto asks him.

Hakurei opens his mouth and shouts, "I WANTED MY THRONE BACK! Do you know how pathetic it is to listen to some fool who acts on his emotions? All he ever cared about was his precious water princess! He ruined everything I worked hard for!"

"...So, what will you do with him, Naruto?" Black asks the golden haired ninja. "Want me to cut his brains out?"

"...I'm not gonna kill you," he says, shocking all three of them.

"SAY WHAT?"

"You know allot of stuff about my family and Long, right? I'll keep you alive so you can teach me your knowledge!" Naruto says to him, making a sharp toothed smile.

"He tried to kill you just now! Are you okay with that?" Kaimuto asks him.

"Of course not! I'm gonna make him pay alright, but killing's not my thing." Naruto sighs as he reads back what he said in his mind. His golden energy recedes into his body, turning his hair red again. "Maybe I am too nice."

"I may not be able to use any spells when I'm just a head, but I won't stand for some human, even a half blood, treating me like a toy!" Hakurei tries to spit at Naruto afterwards, but nothing comes out. "Damn it!"

The trio then laughs at his predicament. Black then says, "Let's go. I gotta take that other guy home too."

Kaimuto digs behind him and hands Naruto his saucer of kunai. They then get into position, and with Kaimuto's directions they travel back to where they left Shiki.

Later...

"Naruto!" Someone shouts out. Naruto, Shiki, looks back from where he's sitting and spots the three Narutos from earlier flying down to him. "You're still here, wow."

"Of course!" Naruto says to Black. He hops off the saucer with Kaimuto and DS. "I'm ready to go now."

"What about him?" Kaimuto asks, pointing to Omicron laying down for rest.

"I'll keep him," DS says, placing a hand on the red dragon to pet him. Omicron growls a little, but then softens after looking into his eyes. At that, Black takes out one of his kunai. "Good bye guys. Let's hope the next time we meet are under planned situations."

"Yeah right, not if this idiot's involved. No more space traveling kunai!" Kaimuto shouts at him.

"I said I was sorry! Sheesh!" Black whines.

"I'm not really mad. Thanks to him I'm alive," DS says to them.

"I almost fell down a cliff," Naruto says to them.

"See? It's not pointless!" Black shouts at Kaimuto, who scuffs annoyed.

"Time to go enjoy Ayame's cooking. But first, your stop Kamen Rider," Black says before throwing his kunai before them. It passes through space, creating a portal. The three Narutos walks through: Black waves at DS, Kaimuto gives him a thumbs up, and Naruto mouths, 'good luck'.

After they pass through the portal closes, giving a yellow flash of light. Naruto, finally alone with both a talking skull and a dragon, sighs and places Hakurei on the ground. "I want you to call off this war the moment we find one of the Gokage!"

"That's absurd! There would be no point!" Hakurei says to him.

"It will, or I could just let you talk to him." Naruto adjusts Hakurei's head to look at Omicron, who roars at him.

"Okay, fine!" With his agreement Naruto tosses him in the air, much to his fear. He then grabs the skull and hops on Omicron's back. "Omicron, right? Can you take me to Kirigakure?"

"Idiot! If you're looking for the Gokage, you'll have to search at the summit!" Hakurei tells the red head. Hearing him, Omicron growls and flaps his wings. He then takes off, flying straight for the Gokage summit.

* * *

Julia: Finally, this special is over. All that's left is to deal with Sasuke, and then the final showdown with Long... So which is first?

Yusei: Dunno... *reads outline* Says here, the next time we'll finally be getting a lemon.

Kenshin and Nikolai: REALLY?

Manabu: *sighs* Before we end this chapter, we will give the final information to the Twilight Star. Now I expect no one to steal this because it's all on TCM's profile. All but the Rainbow ? swords are based off of transformations from other anime/video games/manga.

Chromedread - Super Vandread  
Gilgamesh - Silver Skin Another Type  
Kuro Getsuga - Tensa Zangetsu  
Shining Angelus - Elemental Hero Shining Flare Wingman  
Final Arcana - Drive Mode Final Form  
Tenchi - Light Hawk Wings  
Omega Arts - Omegamon X  
Sakasa Ace - Megaman Ace Program Finalization: Black Ace  
Edge Daemon - Soul Edge/Gregar/Falzar

Alchemic Sword Gilgamesh + Darkness Sword Kuroi Getsuga = Lunar Napalm

The two blades merge together to form a single weapon. The sword can then release six powerful, black explosions or twelve ones half the strength of normal. They can be used with a single sword swing, or even six at once. With the appearance of the Rainbow Sky Sword it can now be used twice a day without affecting the whole sword.

Chaos Sword Final Arcana + Dragon Sword Omega Arts = Omega Cannon

The sword transforms into Omega Arts and Final Arcana project themselves on the sides. The sword then fires an extremely large stream of gray lightning capable of terrible destruction. It's way stronger than even Rairyu no Hoko, and at this point the charge has reached the level of Hotengeki. With the appearance of the Rainbow Sky Sword it can now be used once a day until it can be recharged, without the sword itself hindering the user.

Crystal Sword Chromedread + Solar Sword Shining Angelus = Shining Adamants

The sword becomes Chromedread, and the crystal blade shines with the glow of Shining Angelus. The crystals spread into small, sharpened fragments, and fire themselves at the target. Each fragment will strike the target until the entire sword has been shaved of its blade. At the end there will be nothing left but the hilt, which will take some time to grow back; at that point it can't become any of the swords. With the appearance of the Rainbow Sky Sword it can now be used as long as the blade can regrow in time.

Phantom Sword Tenchi + Antimatter Sword Sakasa Ace = Ghost Slayer

The sword combines the two together to form an ethereal blade that can extend to three miles. Slashing someone with it gives off the same effects as the sealing arrows, and chains down the victim's(s) energy for as long as the user deems. It can also cut through attacks without a physical body and even those made of antimatter like Madara when he goes intangible. With the appearance of the Rainbow Sky Sword it can now be used for every charge on Tenchi.


	37. The Long Awaited Lemonade

**_Naruto and The Water Princess_**

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the other stuff. Let's see... One Piece, Fairy Tail, Static and there was one more... Rave!

**_Chapter 37: The Long Awaited Lemonade  
_**

* * *

Before Naruto's Battle With Hakurei...

Deep in a location hidden within the Shinobi Continent, closest to the Land of Fire, a man covered in golden robes walks into an empty room. He plops himself on the ground, grumbling and growling under his breath. His sharp canines flash in what little light is there, as he calls out, "Sheji!"

After getting no answer, he tries again, shouting this time, "SHEJI," but to no avail. He sniffs the air, only to be disappointed with what he found; nothing. Angry, he looks around the room in search of the one thing he goes for to calm himself down, a giant jar of sake. He lifts the jug with ease and pours himself a bowl, grumbling that no one else is around to do it, but his rage only increases when he realizes that the jar's practically empty. It's not even enough to fill a four ounce cup.

The man tosses the bottle at the window giving him light, shattering the dusty, church stain glass and bringing in more light. This light shines in his face, revealing the man is actually the indigenous Long. He picks up his cup and prepares to sip, but that's when an energy spike trips his senses. He looks at a wall, and grins. "So, that's what going on... Now that my hangover's over I can tell exactly where he is, and who he's fighting..."

Long wolfs down the entire drink, tossing the cup to the ground so hard it smashes into small pieces. He then runs out the door, heading straight into the skies. On his way he drops a small little ember at the entrance, and an explosion levels the place. Long then continues flying, grinning from tooth to tooth as he reaches a cave. He lands and steps inside, walking until he finds what he's looking for. "If he's unable to do anything, then I'll do it."

Back To Action...

Naruto flies through the skies of the Shinobi Nation, riding on the back of the red dragon Omicron. In his hands is the talking skull Hakurei, the mastermind behind the Kyubi attack and most of his problems. He looks down below and says, "You know, sometimes I wonder what it would be like to fly by myself."

"It's not so fun when you can do it all the time," Hakurei says to him. "It's really overrated."

"Don't give a dime," Naruto replies, flicking him on the forehead. He shouts out in pain, and that's when Naruto realizes something. "You know, I feel like I'm forgetting something."

"You reduced me to a skull, you're going back home, and you just befriended a dragon. What else is there?" The talking skull asks him.

Naruto takes a moment to think, and then yells horrified. "I LEFT KILLER BEE!"

"...Oh yeah, him..." Naruto grabs onto Omicron's horns and pulls back, halting his course.

"Take me to Amegakure instead! I have to pick someone up!" Omicron growls angrily at him. He smiles sheepishly and says, "I'm sorry. I'll treat you to something later."

The dragon nods, and makes a u-turn straight for Amegakure. On a dragon's back it takes a shorter time than traveling from there to Shiki's position and then to where he stopped. Naruto and the two monsters reach Amegakure, right where Killer Bee is resting. "Bee!"

"Duck!" Hakurei shouts at him.

"Who cares about birds right no-AAGH!" Naruto is suddenly hit in the back by a fireball. It knocks him off of Omicron along with the talking skull, and they crash into the sea. Omicron slams onto the ground. The rain begins to lift, leaving a clear sky over the rainy village. Descending from the skies above is Long, still wearing his golden robes.

Naruto resurfaces and drags himself to land. After he places Hakurei on the ground he looks up at him and asks, "Who's he?"

"Gah! Long!" Hakurei shouts suddenly, shocked that the dragon himself has finally shown himself. Naruto's eyes tense and his heart explodes with anger. "What's he doing here?"

"So, that's Long..." Naruto says with a growl. He forms a swirling wind around his left hand, and glares at the dragon.

Long lands before them, dropping a huge statue he managed to carry along with him. "Well, well, look at this... A fallen dragon, a talking skull, and the last of the dragon slayers. You've really fallen, Hakurei."

"What are you doing with the Gedo Statue?" Hakurei shouts at him angrily.

"What's that?" Naruto asks. He wouldn't really know about the statue since he was asleep at the time.

"This statue is filled with eight forms of chakra that make up the Juubi's soul. You said you could kill the Uzumaki by draining his demonic chakra into the statue to revive the guy, but not only did you fail you couldn't even kill him yourself." Long's statement angers the talking skull, who can't help but agree that he's right. "Even the original Madara wasn't this pathetic and predictable."

"Original?"

"If I'm so pathetic that you knew what I was planning, why didn't you do anything? Why did you let me continue what I was doing?" Hakurei questions him.

"Because as long as the Uzumaki was killed I could kill you later on. But now it seems I have to do everything myself, like I should have done a long time ago!" Long forms a second fireball and tosses it at Naruto.

"Rasengan!" Naruto uses a spiraling sphere to blow up the fireball, and then forms Hontengeki. "Rairyu no Houtengeki!"

He swings and extends his electric spear, piercing Long in the stomach. The lightning fries him, knocking the dragon out the sky. He crashes to the ground before the Gedo Statue, still sparking. Naruto dashes at him, and gives a Kaminari Punch to his stomach. The punch is strong enough to force him to spit blood, even clutching his wounds painfully.

"Annoying... It really does look like I can't fight you personally... But that won't stop me from doing this!" Long grabs Naruto by his arms and swings, tossing him along the ground. He then runs to Killer Bee and lifts him up, facing his body to the statue. Upon feeling his presence the statue opens all nine of its eyes, and glares at him. Energy leaks out from the statue into Killer Bee's body, causing him to scream in pain.

Naruto finally picks himself up and sees Killer Bee absorbing the demon chakra. "Bee!"

"I can't kill you, but the Juubi can! Once the chakra is finished absorbing into his body, the Juubi will be freed from the moon and regain his soul!" Long says with a grin. As the eight streams of energy enter his body, the moon actually does look like it's getting closer. Its reflection reveals a black fur beast with one eye glaring down at the earth below.

Black fumes plume off of the moon, overshadowing Killer Bee and the statue into the form of a ball of darkness. Naruto runs over to save him, but a powerful shockwave blows him away. He lands even further away from the statue, and spots a one armed Magellan who sent him flying. "You!"

"Sorry kid," he says, walking over to the fatigued dragon slayer. Naruto ignores him and runs towards the statue, stopping by Omicron and Hakurei at the midpoint.

Before anyone could do anything, the ground before them splits apart. Even the water splits up, leaving nothing but darkness below. The ground and water shift, turning into pieces of paper. Naruto reaches out and grabs hold of the dragon and the skull, even as some slips of paper wrap around his body. "What's this?"

"Kami no Shisha no Jutsu!(Paper Person of God Technique)" A voice speaks. The last thing Naruto sees before his eyes are covered is Konan's figure floating in midair.

Some slips of paper fling themselves onto Long and Magellan. Long grabs one, saying, "You think this is enough to-"

The paper explodes, burning his hand. "Ah! What the fuck?"

"This is my greatest technique..." Konan says to Long, parts of her face peeling off to resemble paper. "More than 85 percent of the paper you're surrounded by are explosive tags. These six hundred billion slips of paper are enough for ten minutes of constant explosions!"

"Ten minutes?" Magellan says in shock, before one tag explodes on his back.

"And just who are you?" Long comments, blocking his face from three explosions.

"I had prepared this technique for Madara, or as you call him Hakurei, but it's more important that I use this on you!" Konan says to him. The paper tomb that holds Naruto, Omicron and Hakurei is sent flying through the skies. She then says, "There's no way I can let you kill him!"

The explosions continue to rampage the two demons, coordinated by Konan's skillful planning. Since she planned this for Madara, er, Hakurei, she's unsure of if this will be truly successful on them.

After the ten minutes of continuous explosions have ended, Konan can be seen in Amegakure panting by the shore. That move took too much out of her. "I... I... got them..."

By the sea where she buried Long and Magellan in explosions, water rises up high in the form of a giant pillar. Konan's eyes widen in fear as she sees the water fall, and a giant green scaled dragon with golden hair, horns and red eyes glaring down at her. The serpentine Asian dragon is extremely tall in size and length, making the Madara from that other universe look like a pebble compared to a snake.

"This can't be... What kind of monster is this?" she mutters to herself as the dragon glares down at her.

It opens its mouth and hurls out Magellan, who falls to the water half death. The dragon then speaks, saying, "Mere explosions have no chance of piercing through a dragon's scales. Humans are naturally ants compared to dragons."

Konan backs away from the large dragon, who rises up completely from the sea. Below him darkness explodes into a pillar of black. A large beast rises up from the depth, a black furred ten tailed demon with one eye. It's about the same size as Long, even bigger than the other Bijus. "Oh? So the Juubi has been resurrected."

"This can't be!" The Juubi opens its mouth and dark energy gathers between his jaws. It fires a beam of destruction at Konan.

Later...

The paper cocoon holding Naruto and the other two land in a clearing, right by a giant oak tree in a forest. Naruto releases an electric pulse, magnetizing the paper and forcing it off of him. He then does the same for the others, freeing Omicron and Hakurei. "You alright?"

"Yeah, thanks for asking," Hakurei replies.

"Not you, blockhead!" Naruto shouts at him. He then goes to Omicron and rubs his head, much to Hakurei's grumpiness. "Konan helped me, didn't she?"

Omicron nods in response, answering his question. "I see... I haven't seen her since I fought Pain..."

_Flashback..._

_After the battle with Pain/Nagato, the paper tree disperses into sheets and scatters into the wind. Konan can be seen wrapping Nagato's body, and the Tendou Pain, with slips of paper. Naruto asks, "Why are you taking him?"_

_"This is the body of someone precious to both me and Pain," she says to him._

_"...Yahiko, right?" His answer brings Konan to nod. "So, what's left for you? Are you going back to Akatsuki? I'd hate to fight you."_

_"Of course not. Nagato and Yahiko were all I had in this world; with them and Jiraiya-sensei gone I'm alone now. I have nothing to gain by returning to that monster Madara," she tells the boy. A lone tear falls from her left eye, ruining her makeup a bit. She turns to Naruto and says, "Besides, Nagato believed in you so much he died to atone for killing your loved ones... So I will believe in him too... Amegakure will help you achieve your dream."_

_"You don't have to be alone, you know. Come back to Konoha with me! I'm sure I can find you a room at my house," he says to the blue haired beauty. Her mouth gapes open an inch, thinking this boy is trying to hit on her. Naruto cups his chin and thinks outloud, "Although, I hope Hinata, Sakura, Mei and Samui will be okay with it. They'll think I'm trying to find a fifth wife."_

_"...So, I'm not good enough to be your wife, huh?" Konan asks him in a slightly hurt tone._

_"Ah! But that's... I wasn't-" He stutters as he tries to find a way to explain himself. Though Konan chuckles a bit, holding her left hand to her mouth._

_"I'm just kidding... You're more like Yahiko than I noticed..." she says, finding herself smiling at him. "Thank you for the offer, but I can't abandon Amegakure yet. I have one more thing to do before I can even consider trying a new life somewhere else."_

_"Well, I hope for the best... The name Naruto, the guts to never give up, and Pain... That's what my master and sempai have given me," he says to Konan._

_A large smile appears on Konan's face before she walks over to him. Naruto backs away a little and looks up at her, asking, "Uh, what are you-"_

_Konan latches her arms around Naruto, hugging the blond ninja affectionately. "I hope you will become a flower of hope that never wilts."_

_End Flashback..._

"I hope she's okay," Naruto mumbles as he rubs Omicron's head.

"She's rather easy to figure out, always fighting for love," Hakurei grumbles, trying to move his head.

"What are you talking about? She doesn't love me," Naruto tells him.

"Man you're stupid," Hakurei says, insulting the red haired ninja. Naruto kicks him into a tree out of anger. He shouts, "Damn it! What the hell's your problem? Can't you take criticism?"

"Sorry, my foot slipped." His response is accompanied by a plain, emotionless face.

"Anyway, Konan fights for love. She's only stayed beside Nagato's foolish justice crap because she loved him and that...that... What was his name? Yahoo?"

"Yahiko."

"Yahiko! Yeah, thanks!" Hakurei uses his jaw to try and sit his head up. "I was the one who led them to create Akatsuki in my image. I also took to spying on them and learned some things; that guy, Yahiko, was the one who started Akatsuki and brought their idea of justice to pass. Without him neither of those two would have been alive. Because that skinny bastard believed in you, leaving you with his mission, you embody all that is left of those two to her, and all that she loves now rests within you... And to think I was going to kill him and impersonate the guy."

Naruto takes a moment to pause, thinking about Konan and the danger she's put herself into. "I'm going back to help her."

"You idiot! You're too injured by our fight! If you get killed by the Juubi now Long will get what he wants, and I'll be stuck as a stupid skull!"

"I don't care!" Naruto prepares to head back to where Konan was, sniffing the air for her scent. That's when a flurry of paper flies down to them. It takes the form of a body, molding and merging to form Konan. "Konan!"

"Naruto..." Konan raises her head to look at Naruto. His eyes widen in shock when he sees that she's missing an arm. The blood that's left drips down to the earth.

"Konan! Your arm!"

"That's not important..." She stands and prepares to walk off, but just as quickly falls to her knees. Naruto manages to catch her before she completely falls. A small blush rises on her face as she looks back at him. "Naruto?"

"I'm taking you to Konoha. Tsunade can heal you right up!" Naruto says to her, carrying her over to the red dragon. "I'm just sad that I couldn't save Killer Bee... I don't know how Samui will feel..."

"You mean the Jinchuuriki?" she asks him. Her body converts to paper, and out falls Killer Bee. This shocks Naruto, mostly because he didn't know she could do that. "I managed to spring him from the water, but I lost my arm in the process because I was wet..."

"...Thank you..." Naruto whispers to her, thankful for her help. Omicron rises up, but then falls down tired. He begins snoring, showing he's asleep. "Omicron's asleep... Guess we're stuck here."

"Let's go to that tree's hallow base," Hakurei says, looking at the large oak tree in front of them. Naruto grabs hold of Omicron's tail and drags him to the tree, with Konan still in his arms. "Hey, you forgot about me!"

After Naruto lays Konan in the tree, he walks over to the skull and picks him up. They then head to the tree, with Naruto lying beside the dragon. Naruto then says, "We'll head for Konoha when he wakes up. Can you hold out til then, Konan?"

"I'll be fine once I regain my chakra. I can restore my arm then..." Konan says to him, snuggling next to the red head. Her other arm wraps around him, causing him to blush, while she says, "You should get some rest too. You'll tired yourself out."

"...I guess," he says, lying his head down by hers.

Elsewhere...

The Juubi howls into the skies. Long reverts to his human form, sitting by the shore. "I could go after them, but that wouldn't be fun at all... I'll go after him later..."

"Who... Who are you?" The ten tailed beasts speaks, gathering the dragon's attention.

"Huh? Don't you remember me?" The Juubi remains silent and stares at the gold dragon. "Heh? You don't remember anything, do you?"

That Evening...

The red dragon manages to land in the hidden village of the leaves. The shinobi gather for battle, but Naruto hops off of Omicron and turns to everyone. "Hold on! He's with me!"

"Naruto!" Kakashi comes before him, shocked to hear his voice. "Naruto, you're okay!"

"Yeah, I've been through a lot... Oh yeah!" Naruto goes to Konan and helps her down. By now she's removed her Akatsuki cloak, knowing no one would be so warming to her if she was wearing it. "Konan here needs medical attention."

Kakashi takes a moment to stare at her. He does remember the reports talking about a woman with blue hair being a part of the description. Still, she can't be so evil if Naruto is so kind to her. He helps her up and takes the woman to the hospital, saying, "I got her. You should head to the Hokage's office."

"...Thanks." Naruto goes to the dragon's back and removes a wrapped up item left there. He then walks to the tower, Omicron walking slowly after him. Everyone gets out of his way as he walks, mostly because of the dragon. Naruto comes up to the tower and enters inside, racing up the stairs to reach Tsunade's office.

He opens the left door to her room, just as Tsunade and Shizune are talking. Shizune, without looking, says to him, "We'll speak to you later. We're still in the middle of a crisis."

"How bad a crisis?" he asks her. His voice garners their attention and prompts them to look, and to their shock it's him. The right door opens up and reveals to him an even bigger surprise; Mei. "Mei?"

"Naruto!" They all shout. Mei latches her arms around him, hugging the boy as hard as she could.

"I'm so glad you're okay! I came over here because I was hoping to see you... Then I heard the-" Naruto pushes Mei off of him, causing her to come out of her cries. He wipes the tears away from her eyes. "Naruto?"

"Mei, I have something to ask you... Do you know of someone named Long?" he asks the red head, shocking her.

"...Can I tell you in private?" Mei replies, her tears stopping.

"If there's something you're hiding Mizukage-dono then it's best that you tell me too," Tsunade says to her, interjecting into their conversation.

"...Fine..." Mei rises up and takes his hand, leading him into the room. Naruto closes the door behind him.

Outside, Hinata, Samui and Sakura are running towards the Hokage Tower. After hearing news of Naruto's return they wasted no time coming here. Sakura kicks the door down, shouting, "Tsunade-sama! Is Naruto here?"

The three women in the room watch the other three as they enter the room, stepping on the door Sakura knocked off the hinges. Tsunade then says, "Yes, but right now I want you to get off the door."

"Why's that?" Hinata asks her.

"Because you're standing on Naruto-kun," Shizune answers. The three ladies look down and gasp in shock as they realize the injured Naruto is underneath the door, bleeding from his head.

"Naruto!" They step off of him and lift the door up. Samui tosses it away and Hinata helps Naruto up.

"Naruto! Are you okay? I'm sorry for stepping on you!" The Hyuga heiress tells him, hugging him closely.

"I missed you so much Naruto!" Samui hugs him as well, trying her best to hold back her tears.

"Wait! I have to heal him!"

Later...

Once everyone calms down, and Naruto is healed by Tsunade and Sakura, they all stand, or sit in his and Tsunade's case, before the desk. Shizune is standing by her left, and Mei is on the other side of the desk. That's when Naruto asks, "So, you're all better right? Sasuke's Sharingan power doesn't affect you anymore, right?"

"Right..." Sakura says to him.

"Thank goodness..." His eyes then dart to Hinata. He remembers knocking her out so he could get away without her following, and now feels guilty for it. "Hinata, I'm sorry for what I did to you."

"I accept your apology..." Hinata says to him, looking up at his face. Her face becomes stern though, and she says, "But next time I will come with you no matter what; and I may just knock you out."

"...right..." Naruto backs away with worry having heard that from her. He didn't expect her to sound so confident.

"Naruto..." Mei says, gathering the red head's attention. "I do know of someone name Long. Like most of the foes you've been facing, he's a demon out for your head. But unlike them he's the one who ordered them to; he's a dragon."

"I knew it..." Naruto mutters.

"A dragon slayer is a human who specializes in destroying dragons, because the energy they use for battle can also absorb other dragons'. He wants to destroy your clan so no one can oppose him," Mei tells him. "Long is incredibly powerful, even stronger than Ha-I mean, Madara. But he won't face you directly because your power still holds strength against him."

"But doesn't need to. He revived the Juubi!" His statement shocks Tsunade and Mei.

"The Juubi? Then, it should be on its way here then..." Mei whispers to herself.

"The Juubi... It's the ten tailed beast that is the fusion of all nine Biju?" Tsunade questions him. "But that could only happen if you were captured and-"

"They did steal the Kyubi from my body, but I was saved by some unknown reason and ended up someplace. I still have a piece of the Kyubi's chakra, but it's only enough for a tail..." Naruto looks back at Samui and sighs. "They also kidnapped Killer Bee."

"What?" Samui becomes shocked hearing that.

"He's with Konan at the hospital right now... I don't know if he's okay, but I did my best to save him..." Naruto then goes behind him and takes out the wrapped up Akatsuki robe. He unravels it, revealing Hakurei's head, breathing in finally. "This is Hakurei. He was impersonating Madara and leading Akatsuki."

"Hakurei?" Mei looks down at the skull with a shocked expression. She thinks, 'He defeated the Demon Skull King? The strongest of the Skelgar tribe?'

"Naruto, this is a great accomplishment... Is it alive?" Tsunade asks, looking down at the head.

"OF COURSE I AM YOU OLD BITCH!" She moves from her seat and kicks him straight into the ceiling. "OW!"

"I'm keeping him around because I want him to teach me some of his spells. They might be useful," Naruto says before catching Hakurei in his hands.

"We can learn more about any surviving Akatsuki members from him." Shizune suggests to the Hokage.

"...Alright, we'll keep him around," Tsunade says.

"If everything's cool then I'm going home... I'm really tired..." he says, walking towards the open doorway. 'I'll ask her about this Water Princess thing later...'

"That's understandable. You get some rest; you'll need it," she tells him.

Even Later At The Mansion...

Naruto wanders inside his home, with Samui, Hinata and Sakura behind him. Mei has decided to stay behind with the Hokage and pilfer info from the talking skull. Omicron's around back, unable to enter due to the security system. After Naruto registers Omicron he goes straight to bed, stripping down to his boxers and lying down.

"What a long day..." he mumbles, lying back on his bed.

**Warning! Lemon...**

Hinata creeps inside his bedroom, her eyes darting up and down his body. Naruto's nose picks up her scent, and he raises his head up to look at her. "Hinata?"

"Naruto..." She walks over to him, slipping into his bed with him. "I'm so glad you're okay. I was so scared when I heard you went after that guy, and now there's someone stronger after you... I can't fathom how stressed you are..."

"Well, don't worry. I'll be fine," he says to her. She leans forward and kisses him on the lips.

"I want to make you feel fine... Hold me," Hinata says softly. Her arms slide along his waist, digging into his boxers.

"Hinata! What are you doing?" he asks her in bewilderment.

"I'm doing what we should have been doing so long ago..." she says, kissing him hard on the lips. Her tongue manages to slip into his mouth, licking his innards and tongue. He fights back, and soon they end up flapping their tongues at eachother inside their mouths. His hands start to glide along her body, going inside of her clothes. He finds that she's not wearing anything underneath what he's seeing. Hinata pulls out of the kiss long enough to pull her clothes off, finally exposing her nude body to him.

He lifts the covers over to get a good look at her, and gasps with a trail of blood coming down his nose. Her breasts look even better without the many bras he's seen them in. The blue haired woman takes his hands and places them on her chest, allowing him to fondle as he pleases. "Go ahead. Massage them."

"O-Okay." Naruto does just that, moving and rubbing Hinata's D size breasts, while she wraps her legs around his waist, rubbing the edge of herself right over the bulge in his pants. Her moans become more apparent as her panties become wet. Naruto takes one of his hands away from her breasts and places his mouth on it, sucking like he was expecting milk to come out.

"Oh! Oh Naruto!" she cries out, a wave of pleasure rushing through her body. Her panties grow wet from her orgasm, so much they stick to her vagina. While she's still panting Naruto uses his free hand to expose his erect penis to her, pulling a gasp out from her. Her extremely red fade becomes an even darker shade as she stares at it. "Wow, it's a great size."

"Really?" he asks her. She places a hand on his cock and begins stroking, bringing a moan out of him.

"Well, I haven't seen any others to compare..." Hinata uses one of her hands to pull down her panties, sliding them off her legs. The sticky wetness slimes her legs along the way. With a seductive look she says innocently, "Take me..."

'Whoa! Hinata looks so hot right now I could lose it...' Naruto positions himself by her entrance. Before he goes through with it, he asks her, "Are you ready?"

"Yeah..." Naruto plunges himself inside her, moving slowly before reaching her wall. He sees her cringe in pain, and feels her body twitch. With one swift motion he breaks her barrier, causing her to cry out in pain. Blood leaks from the side, streaming down his penis. "Naruto!"

"Hinata." Naruto holds her closely, trying to contain himself due to her tightness. Due to the pleasure he's feeling he accidentally releases a little bit of electricity, giving a small electric shock to her body. It's light enough not to give her pain, but it hurts enough to make her moan out in pleasure. For that instance she forgets the pain of losing her virginity at the moment.

"Oh yes!" She grabs hold of him, leaning forward to giving him sloppy French kiss. Her hips begin to move, going up and down his shaft. Naruto kisses back, and soon he begins to pump inside her body. Her moans grow louder as he starts getting into it, rolling her over underneath him. "Naruto! OH YEAH!"

'Where's this side of Hinata been hiding?' Naruto thinks as he pounds her harder. Her breasts rock back in forth with their motion.

Outside the door Samui and Sakura are watching silently, unable to stay away from the moans Hinata kept giving off. By now Sakura is rubbing her legs together and Samui is fingering herself with a hand up her skirt. "Naruto is really giving it to her. Samui, do you think he'll have enough energy for us?"

"I doubt it. He's putting all his energy into this," Samui answers her, feeling more wetness drenching her hand.

"Naruto! I'm cumming!" Hinata cries, wrapping her legs around his waist as her inner walls squeeze his cock to the extreme. She screams even louder, her orgasm ripping through her and causing her to black out.

"I am too!" Naruto tells her, trying to move her off of him. But due to her orgasm she tightened her grip on him, and he ejaculates inside of her womb. Hinata moans louder, even more than she's been doing so far, feeling his hot seed stick to her inner walls and flood her womb.

**End Lemon...**

After the climax subsides, he falls down on top of her. Hinata and Naruto look at eachother, staring deep into their eyes while panting. Hinata manages to say, "I love you..."

"...I love you too," he replies, leaning in to give her one more kiss. He then passes out, falling asleep on the bed. Hinata blacks out too, sliding herself off of him. With them asleep, Samui and Sakura go inside the bedroom, having stripped down to their underwear. Sakura snuggles up to his legs, resting by his diminishing erection, while Samui wraps her arms around his back like always.

Outside Omicron lies on the ground, growling as he stares at a giant centipede.

Elsewhere...

At the hospital Konan is using her paper abilities to restore her arm slowly. Now that it's dried she can reform it. There's a knock on her door, where a voice says, "Coming in."

"Enter," she replies, and in steps Manabu with his left leg bandaged up. She gasps in shock and says, "You!"

"You're that blue haired woman from Akatsuki... Konan right?" he asks her. He walks to her and sits by her side. "I hear Naruto's back... Did anything happen to him?"

"...Well, allot did happen," she begins, looking away from him. "He's in more trouble than before. He might not be able to stop him alone."

"I see..." Manabu says to himself, turning to the window where the moon can be seen. His eyes give a bright flash, temporarily turning yellow with slit irises. "Then I'll just become stronger."

* * *

Manabu: That ends this chapter. Next time... Someone say it.

Dante: Wuss... Next time Naruto hears about the truth of Mei's status as the water princess from her directly. But before that he finally bangs Samui and Sakura.


	38. The Truth of The Water Princess

**_Naruto and The Water Princess_**

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the other stuff. Let's see... One Piece, Fairy Tail, Static and there was one more... Rave!

**_Chapter 38: The Truth About The Water Princess  
_**

* * *

**Warning! Lemon...**

Dawn breaks into the mid-eastern sky; Naruto opens his eyes to the bright light of day. Although funny thing; it isn't because of the light that woke him up, it was the feeling of a climax going off through his body that jutted him awake. He looks down at himself to see his penis has formed an erection, and has splashed all over Sakura's face. Looking back he sees Samui there, her hand wrapped around his penis.

"Samui!" Naruto shouts back at her, waking everyone up in the process. As he, Samui and Hinata sit up, the blond opens her eyes to look at Naruto, and gasps when she realizes she masturbated his penis again.

"Kya! I'm sorry Naruto!" she says, removing her sticky hand from his junk. Sakura sits up and begins licking the semen off her lips. As it enters her mouth her panties quickly grow wet. She looks up at Naruto, and smiles seductively.

"What a delicious taste," Sakura says, leaning over to Naruto and placing her arms around the back of his head. "I want more of it."

"Huh?" Sakura kisses him full on the mouth, her tongue quickly sneaking inside through his teeth. She removes her mouth for a moment, allowing him to say, "Sakura, you know I could taste some of myself in your mouth, right?"

"I find that rather sexy, a man big enough to swallow his own fluid," Samui says in a lustful tone, just before licking off his sperm on her fingers.

"I want to make love to you too, just like Hinata did for you." Sakura's statement leads her to kissing him again. He kisses her back, ensuing a makeout session. Samui pulls him back and enters the makeout session herself, tasting her mast-I mean fiance and co-wife.

"Samui to-" Naruto can't make out any words due to their mouths covering his in all possible ways. Hinata leans down to his erection, using her own tongue to lick the rest of the sperm up.

Samui removes her mouth from Naruto, leaving Sakura to taking hold of him fully. She then joins Hinata in orally pleasuring the red haired ninja. Samui soon removes her bra and together with Hinata mashes their boobs together for paizuri, breast fucking. With Naruto now laying back Sakura could get the most out of making out with him, and he slips his hands through her bra to grope her chest.

"Naruto!" she yelps playfully, wrapping her legs around his waist and rubbing herself on his abs. Samui and Hinata grab hold of their breasts by the bottom and begin pushing them up at a much faster pace. They even kiss his tip together and suck on it.

Eventually his moans begin to escape through Sakura's lips, just in time for him to shout, "I'm cumming," and blows his load in their mouths. Naruto's penis stiffens a bit, before standing straight for attention. Hinata and Samui lick eachother of Naruto's sperm, but without them wearing his body down he slides off the bed with Sakura.

"Ouch!" Naruto rises up from the floor rubbing his head. Sakura stands up perfectly fine, and they soon get back on the bed. Samui lays him down on the bed and slowly slides her panties off of her. "So, you want to be first?"

"Of course," she replies, leaning down to kiss him again. Naruto smiles in the kiss and positions himself by her entrance. She punctures herself, doing so before he could ask if she's ready. She cringes in pain, feeling his erection pierce her hymen and take away her virginity. Blood leaks down the side, repeating the event with Hinata. "Naruto!"

Hinata moves in to grab hold of Samui's breasts, leaning her to sit up. Hinata then begins to play with them, trying to override her pain with pleasure the way he did with her. Her leaning up causes his penis to dig even further inside of her, reaching the womb and hitting her G spot. The sudden spike in pleasure releases a jolt from his body, which causes her to cry out. Her juices pour down his shaft, leaving Naruto to realize she had an orgasm.

"Samui, are you okay?" he asks her. Within seconds she answers, by moving up and down his penis. Her orgasm has lubricated his penis, making her move much faster than Hinata did last night. "I'll take that as a yes."

"Oh, Naruto!" she moans, leaning down to press her breasts up to him. Just looking at her flushed face as he pounds her most vulnerable spots, seeing her usual cold exterior disappear, causes him to lose it. He wraps his arms around her, just as she does him, and both of them sit up to make the most of their experience. He then notices Sakura and Hinata watching with anticipation.

After a while Naruto lifts Samui off of him, leaving her to complain, "Why did you stop?"

"I wanna give Sakura and Hinata something too." Naruto forms the cross hand seal for the Kage Bunshin, creating two clones just as nude as they are. Sakura and Hinata gasp happily seeing the two Narutos before them. "One and two, keep Sakura and Hinata busy."

"So, Naruto can please all of us at once?" Hinata realizes, not having thought about it before. If she had she could have been taking it up both ends while enjoying the taste of sperm. The first clone goes to her, and immediately inserts himself inside of her. She cries out in pleasure.

"I'll settle for pleasuring you with my mouth," Sakura says before she grabs hold of the second clone's penis and greedily sucks on it.

Samui gets herself on all four, and positions herself before Naruto, wagging her dripping wet cunt in front of his face. "Give me lots of your love, Naruto."

Without hesitation he plunges his penis inside of her. She cries out happily, tears beginning to form in her eyes. He continues to pump inside of her, gaining more wonderful noise from the buxom blond beauty. "Samui!"

"N-Naruto! Naruto!" After a while Samui cries out, reaching her third orgasm of the day. Naruto leans forward and hugs her, grabbing hold of her huge gams to pound harder.

"OH YES!" Hinata moans loudly, feeling her orgasm coming quicker than before. "YES! FUCK ME!"

'Who knew the sweet Hinata who used to follow me around had such a sexy side to her? I really like it!' Naruto clone 1 thinks as he continues to slam her behind. The other clone orgasms inside of Sakura's mouth, while he does the same to her due to the 69 position they're in.

"Samui, I'm gonna cum again!" The real one says to her, giving his next climax inside of her womb. Samui relishes in her latest climax, falling to the bed with him still on her back. At this point he begins to notice how tired he's feeling; he still has plenty of energy, but now he realizes just how much energy he's expelled. Naruto can even see how much energy he spilled into her body, watching it drip down through the folds.

Samui moves her upper body to give him a kiss, placing all her warm and emotion into it despite her tiredness. Naruto removes himself from her pussy, before finishing their kiss. He then turns to Sakura, who is still licking his sperm from her lips. Sakura smiles at him, in the same way Hinata and Samui have done for him right before he made love to them. "I'm next, huh?"

"Yes you are." Naruto crawls over to her, laying the girl down on the bed. The clone she was just using as a lollypop moves onto Samui, immediately going to paizuri.

Naruto moves her panties out of the way to expose her ready and present vagina, slowly penetrating her with his rod. She cries out in pleasure feeling him enter her body. Unlike the others Naruto doesn't see any blood coming from her vagina at all. Naruto keeps this up, hitting her as fast and hard as the other two. "Yes! Yes! Yes! Oh god!"

"You make a lot of noise when you're being hammered, huh? Let's make some more then!" Naruto begins to pound her harder, causing Sakura to moan even harder. Her hands drift down to his behind, and her left index finger pokes itself inside his rectum.

"Gah!" he shouts suddenly, feeling her finger wiggling inside of him. It increases his erection's width, and her pleasure, but he still finds it weird and gross. He then tells her, "HEY, GET OUT OF THERE!"

Outside Mei can be seen watching everything going on. "Naruto is really good at this."

"Just knock on the door!" Hakurei yells in her arms, gathering the lovefest's attention.

The main Naruto hears this, but Sakura doesn't stop moving her lower regions. Caught off guard, Naruto releases himself inside of her, and the warm giving by his sperm throws her over the edge for her climax. Unlike the others Sakura's finger crap caused him to shoot even more than usual. After her screaming subsides, she plops back on the bed, unable to keep her eyes open from her 'vigorous workout'. Naruto removes himself from her folds and walks over to Mei. "Mei? What are you doing here?"

"Cover yourself up!" Hakurei shouts, trying to close his eyes. But this stinks for him, because he has no eyelids. At that moment the other clones dispel from their orgasms, embarrassing him even more than he already is. What neither of them know, or will for the next couple of days probably, is that Naruto's sperm has continued crawling into their wombs. Right now, Samui's womb has been attacked.

**Lemon Has Ended...**

Later...

After getting dressed, in robes, Naruto-tachi are now downstairs in the kitchen with Mei and Hakurei the talking skull. He glares at the author for that comment, while Mei says, "Naruto, I'm sorry. I was kind of lying to you."

"Lying?" Naruto asks her.

"...Naruto, back at the office, I said that Long wants to kill you because you are the descendant of his sister the dragon Julia... That was a lie; he doesn't care at all about that..." Naruto blinks a bit upon hearing that. "Long wants you dead because he loves me."

"What?" Samui, Sakura and Hinata shout in shock.

"A long time ago, I was known as the water princess."

_Flashback..._

_The world used to be separated into three kingdoms: the continent of land Terra, the continent of water Aqua, and the continent of sky Ventus. Terra was the most powerful of the continents dominated by mostly demons, especially their ruler Hakurei. Ventus was the most peaceful, where humans could live without worrying about demon attacks constantly. Aqua was a mostly underwater continent where I was born. I was born as royalty, the most powerful of the spirit class of dragons; the Water Princess._

In the kingdom of Aqua, a woman with long red hair can be seen walking through a hallway. Okay, actually she's skipping, but still. This beautiful 21-looking woman is "Mei-chan!"

Mei stops her skipping, slowing down and sighing. She turns around quickly, hiding her grumble, and with a beautiful smile says, "Hello!"

Approaching her is a blue haired water dragon with flowers, chocolates and a ring. "P-P-Please! Marry me!"

"Okay, whatever," she says, not even listening to his proposal.

Of course he takes it seriously, shouting, "REALLY?"

"But, you'll have to beat my other fiances," she tells him before walking off. Without a single hesitation he runs off, tossing his gifts to her. She tosses the flowers out the window, drops the chocolate box, and places the ring on her finger. "Eh, I could use it before I end up selling it. Daddy dropped my allowance this week."

_Ever since I reached a certain age, my father wanted to marry me off to someone so the Aqua kingdom can have a ruler. But I was a spoiled, rotten brat back then. I didn't care about anyone, not even my father. I only cared about goofing off and toying with others. I disliked humans and my own kind; even humans were better than dealing with those stupid demons proposing to me. The last one to propose to me was Long._

Mei lies flat in a lawnchair, wearing a skimpy bikini made of seashells and a string. "Ahh... What a good day."

"Mei, is that your name?" a voice speaks to her. She sighs annoyed, looking up to see who it was. She sees a blond haired man with sharp red eyes smiling down at him. "Hi. I'm Long. I must say; you're much more beautiful than I thought."

"Yeah, yeah... Look, if you're going to propose to me then you'll have to defeat all the other suitors after-" Once she takes a better look at him, she realizes something. "Wait, aren't you Long? You're the monster class dragon who now rules over them, aren't you?"

"Technically, I have the blood of both classes flowing through my veins... And yes, I am here for your hand in marriage," he tells her, kneeing down by her side. "Marry me, and the dragon clans will be under our control."

"But you already control the dragon clan. Beat it." Mei lies back down, closing her eyes as she bathes in the sun. "Besides, you only want me because of my looks."

"Exactly." His response completely takes her off guard. "You are beautiful; the most beautiful woman in the world should only belong to the most powerful man."

"Then prove your power. Defeat all of my annoying suitors and prove you're better than me." Her challenge sparks a light in his eyes. 'There's no way this selfish weirdo can get to me.'

"Fine then. Keep your legs closed until my return." Long leaves, taking flight and going off into the sky.

_The moment he left I didn't notice how horrible he was. He was more serious about marrying me than any of the other losers who asked for my hand in marriage. I thought he'd give up eventually. But he kept fighting and killing my suitors, and sending me stupid letters. Around that time I left my home for the Ventus continent, with no knowledge of what he was up to. There I met someone, a human._

Mei drinks a cup of water with a faint scowl. "I want to go home, but that father of mine won't quit."

"Your father?" Someone asks her. She sighs and turns around to face who it was, and spots a man with spiky blond hair and clear blue eyes. He wears a robe, similar to all humans of the continent of the sky.

"My father wants me to marry someone I don't know. That jerk," she tells him. She prepares to walk away, but something about him draws her attention back.

"Why don't you tell him to leave you alone?" he suggests.

"I tried. He's a persistent jerk," she replies.

"Then I'll just tell him to back off." With his next suggestion she laughs.

"Yeah right. What, so you can have my hand in marriage?"

"Nope." His answer shocks the red haired woman.

"Eh?"

"Why would I want to marry you? I know nothing about you," he replies to the woman, sitting down beside her. After he places a hand on her shoulder, it causes her heart to skip a beat suddenly. "I think a person should choose who they marry, not have it arranged."

"...What's your name?"

_And so I stayed with him for the entire time. I never returned to the water continent and spent the rest of my days with him, Eiji. During my time with him I discovered he was a half demon of the dragon clan; I didn't care much to think more into it. I met up with one of his friends, a dark haired human named Hina. I could tell how much she loved him, so I went after him as hard as I could; showering Eiji with all my affections. That's when Long returned._

Mei is busy picking up flowers in a garden, when she notices some of the flowers are igniting for some unknown reason. She looks backwards, and gasps when she sees Long walking towards her. "You!"

"I've wiped them all away," he says, tossing her a bag full of skulls. Just looking at it frightens the woman. She cups her mouth in horror. It shows how much of a monster he really is. "Now, give me what you owe."

Long walks over to her, who falls backwards backing away from him. "W-Wait! I have one more challenge for you!"

"No more challenges," he says, grabbing hold of her arms and pushing her down. She screams knowing exactly what he's aiming with this position.

"I promised myself to the Skull King!" Her sudden lie surprises Long, to the point where he grows angry.

"What?"

"The demon king of the land continent! He has stolen my heart! If you want to marry me, you'll have to kill him," she says to him.

"...I see..." Long pushes her to the ground, and flies off.

_Afterwards I fled to Eiji's side. I kept Long trying to force himself on me a secret. But it only made things worse; that lie I made._

Nighttime at Terra, a skeleton dressed in dark purple garbs and wearing a golden crown with diamonds embedded inside glares down at the beings below him. Each and every one of them are his servants, brought under his rule and forced to serve him. He sighs, saying, "This is the most boring day of them all. What to do..."

He looks down at his men, and his eyes flare off into the distance to see someone dying and screaming. "Who's there?"

Long steps towards him, showing a look of hatred. Hakurei's men gather their weapons and prepare for battle. He then tells him, "State your business."

"...I am Long, the king of the dragon clan. I have come to take your throne as the demon ruler," he tells the skeleton king.

Hakurei stares at him for the longest time, before he laughs. After his laugh he says, "A challenge! It's about time some excitement came by... I accept your challenge."

"Is that so?"

"Of course!" Hakurei rises up from his seat and walks towards him down the stairs before he does he whispers a special chant. Metal materializes around him, forming his purple armor and double axe spear. "To be honest if you hadn't shown up I'd have just split my army in half and made them kill eachother. Your appearance is a breath of fresh air."

"Good..." Long whispers the same chant, and metal materializes around him. His armor is cobalt blue with golden rings on the outlines. His hands and feet become magenta and grow sharp nails, and his tail extends while gaining a spiked armor on the tip. His wings sprout out, encased in armor as well. There are five golden spikes on his grey helmet where his blood red eyes glare at Hakurei.

_He was heavily motivated and won in the end. It seems his convictions were stronger than Hakurei's._

Hakurei crashes to the ground, his skeletal form exposed on the battle scarred field. His men have also been crushed, left on the side covered in blood. Long walks over to the skeleton and grabs him by the head. "Stay away from my trophy, got it?"

"What are you talking about?" he growls at him, hacking up a tooth.

"I guess you'll need a good skull fuck before you remember," Long threatens him, frightening the former king of demons.

_After that battle he immediately came after me. I was still in Ventus, and at that moment I was with Eiji. He said he wanted to propose to Hina, so I immediately came onto him and professed my love._

Long lands in the middle of a festival, where Mei has trapped Eiji in a corner and kissed him. Noticing his presence she pushes him away, saying, "Long! You're alive!"

"Of course... Did you think you could hide behind that bag of bones? There's nothing the skelgar tribe can do that dragons can't!" Long tells her.

"Wait, Long?" Eiji mutters before he stands up. Long fires a stream of electricity at him, blowing the guy away.

"EIJI!" she screams, turning to run towards him. Long rushes forward and grabs her arm, slamming her into a wall. The humans realize how powerful a demon he is, and run away in fear. "Let go! I won't marry a monster like you!"

"Yes you will. You are mine no matter what you want!" His words are added with a kick to her stomach, causing her to spit up blood. "I didn't kill my sister traitor and became the king of demons just to lose the only woman worthy of being mine!"

"SO IT IS YOU!" Eiji comes running up to Long, punching him in the face. The force of the punch somehow manages to knock out some teeth, and send him flying through a building. Eiji, his eyes green and his skin converted to scales, glares at him and shouts, "YOU'RE THE ONE WHO KILLED MY MOTHER AND FATHER THEN!"

"Eh?" Mei is speechless hearing this; this is the first time she's heard of Eiji's parents.

_Apparently Long's sister Julia was sick of the dragon tribe and the way they treated humans. Long thought this was suspicious, and discovered she was in love with a human. She also bedded him and gave birth to a child. When he found out he was pissed, because he only saw humans as food, and even more importantly slaves to dragons. This dragon king then continued looking for the humans who held these powers in case other traitors did the same thing. He missed Eiji and moved on, confident that he was dead. Eiji and Long went into battle, with his dragon slayer powers neutralizing Long's._

Long falls down to one knee, his mouth bleeding from the injuries he's suffered. Eiji stands before him holding a sword shrouded with electricity. "You..."

"Why are you after Mei?" Eiji questions the beaten dragon.

"It's true that Mei is nothing more than a bitch who uses men. I've known the moment I saw her..." he says to the human. Mei watches from the sidelines. "But she belongs to me! Even if she loves another person, she belongs only to the strongest of the dragons! There is no place for some other species trying to touch the holy dragon tribe!

"I don't need her to love me; I only need her to be my wife. I can always mold her to be the woman I love!" Long growls at him.

"How can you love me after all you've done? You only cared about me for my appearance!" Mei screams at him.

"That was before, but now I know, that I love you! I will make you mine no matter what!" Long forces himself up to his feet. "You don't deserve to be her husband!"

"I don't want to marry her," he tells them.

"What?" Both of them shout this in unison.

"I'm only defending her as a friend." Eiji runs towards Long, lifting his sword and slashing his head off. "I'm killing you for my family."

Mei watches Eiji silently. That's when Hina comes running towards him, tears in her eyes. "Eiji-kun!"

"Hina-chan," he says, looking back at her as she comes to him. They hug, sharing the emotions they feel for one another with eachother. Mei looks at Eiji with tears filling her eyes.

"E-Eiji? Why! I gave you my feelings!" she says, looking at the couple in shock while trying to regulate her breathing.

"...Mei, I'll always be there for you as a friend, but not as a lover. I don't think anyone can be with such a terrible person like you," he tells her, scarring the woman to her very soul. Her heart broken, she could only watch as the two kiss finally.

_Afterwards I couldn't take it; Those words that he told me have broken me in half. I didn't have the will to live anymore. So I committed suicide, and was brought back to life as a human named Mei Terumi. It wasn't until I turned 18 that my memories of my past life returned. And so I lived on, until I met a man named Minato Namikaze. He looked so much like Eiji I believed he was his reincarnation. He didn't react to my appearance like everyone else either. I tried the best I could to make sure he would be with me this time, but there was one problem at the time; Kushina Uzumaki._

_With her appearance I realized Long was back and trying to eradicate the dragon slayers like before. It wasn't until I met Hakurei disguised as the Mizukage who told me of what he was after this time; killing anyone who could be Eiji's reincarnation, starting with the dragon slayers. He missed Kushina, and she stole Minato's heart. After a while I noticed Eiji's energy signal coming from her belly, and that's when I realized this child would be Eiji's reincarnation. That increased my determination to be with him, by forcing them to make me their child's fiance._

_End Flashback..._

"...And that's the whole truth," Mei says, finishing her long story. The other girls, Naruto and Hakurei remain silent even when she's done. "Naruto?"

"So that's what's going on..." Naruto says, standing up and going towards Mei.

"I can't believe you've gone through all this," Hinata says with understanding.

"I know... It's horrible. I went through all that trouble just to be with you. I guess you're even more upset with Long, who did all these horrible things just because he wanted to be with me-"

"BUT YOU WERE WRONG TOO!" His sudden words grate into the hearts of the women, shocking Mei as well. "If you hadn't strung him along like that you wouldn't have had to deal with all of that! His heart was blackened because of your selfishness! If you had told him to stop before things got out of hand his killing spree would have ended, and I wouldn't have been an orphan!

"I'm sick of all this pointless fighting!" At the end of his speech tears come streaming down his face. Mei couldn't look at him like this, and turns her head away. He gets himself up from his seat and walks upstairs to be alone.

"How could you be so selfish, Mei-san?" Hinata scolds her, following Naruto up the stairs for a chance to comfort him.

"So Long wants to kill him because he wishes to remove Naruto; not because he's a dragon slayer, but because he's the one who stole Mei's affection. He's the only person who has made Mei a better person..." Samui figures as she crosses her arms under her breasts. "You loved Eiji so much you wanted to be with him, no matter how low you sunk. You just wanted to be happy."

"...It's true. Eiji made me realize the error of my ways, and see how I really treated others... It sickens me now that I think about it..." Mei says before she begins to cry.

Hakurei sighs while looking down at Mei's breasts. He chuckles a bit before she pokes him in the eye. Of course since the only thing there are two glowing orbs of light nothing happened. He laughs at her, before she slaps him to the ground. "OW! DAMN IT!"

"You're not helping with my situation! Besides, most of the things that have happened only went through because you agreed to go with it!" Mei tells the talking skull.

"Hey! I may have been a part of killing that brat's parents, but I enjoyed my life before I was forced to fight Long. His reincarnation was a complete accident!" His last statement surprises the others, catching their attention.

"What do you mean accident?"

"Oh, nothing. Anyway, get him down here. The least he can do is kill Long, so I'll teach him some of my spells," he says to the red haired woman. "He's close enough to demons, that spell for materializing armor from energy should be perfect for him."

* * *

Kenshin: This ends this chapter. Soon Naruto will face off against the three monsters left after his life; Long, the Juubi and Sasuke, and not in that order.

Julia: Let's see, how many arcs will this make; The Yuuki Arc, the Chunin Exams Arc, the Hao Arc, the Return Arc, the Rivals Arc, the Justice Arc, and the Final Sword Arc.

Yusei: Do not miss the Water Princess' final story arc; Rising Your Power to Go(l)d. Featuring music from Kamen Rider Kuuga.


	39. Rising Your Power To Gold Part 1

**_Naruto and The Water Princess_**

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the other stuff. Let's see... One Piece, Fairy Tail, Static and there was one more... Rave!

Insert Song: Shout In The Moonlight by Tetra Fang, Kyuukyoku no Yami by Norio Sakai, Rising Your Power To Gold by Norio Sakai

Omake/Side Story-

Samui enters the hospital room, seeing Naruto laying in bed unconscious. She notices the Twilight Star, his tattered and torn clothes and his forehead protector, cut in two, beside him.

"How can this boy be so powerful?" Samui asks herself before she digs into her kunai pouch and holds up a knife. "Could this be the right thing?"

"Put that knife down," a voice speaks to her. Samui turns around and spots the Mizukage Mei, with a look of strong killer intent. Samui could feel it, and without hesitation drops the knife. Eventually the red haired woman calms down, and says, "You must be Samui."

"How do you know that?" Samui glares into the hazel eyes of the beautiful water shadow.

"He told me a woman was suddenly forced to becoming his next fiance, and you're trying to kill him, no?" Mei asks her, crossing her arms under her chest. She then walks towards Naruto, ignoring the blond for the moment while smiling. "You don't want to be with him, do you?"

"I've watched that battle; he can't control his tremendous power," she says, glancing at the peaceful young boy. "Me killing him will be the best thing for him, before he's drowned in his desires."

"I cannot allow that. Naruto will be my husband, and there's no one who will stand in my way of that," Mei says to the cold woman. "I didn't place that spell on Eiji just to let him leave me again."

"What?"

"N-Nothing," she lies, trying to hide what she said just now. Mei then looks at Samui and while smiling says, "If you're going to kill him, you won't be let off easily. I'll make sure you die as slowly as possible."

"Why do you want to marry him?" Samui questions the older woman, sweat coming down her face from that last threat. "Surely there are other guys out there just as good as him if you give them a chance."

"No there isn't. Ei-I mean, Naruto is the only one who cared about me for who I was, not for what I look like..." That slip of the tongue makes Samui ever more suspicious of her. "I can never spend the rest of my life for someone who only likes me for my looks."

"I see... So you're suggesting I give him a chance? To live with him and learn to love him?" Samui asks her.

"Yes. But it won't matter how much he loves you or anyone else; no one shall stand above me," Mei says to her, her smile still present.

Later That Day...

"Bye Samui. I'll be back soon," Naruto says as he leaves with a backpack full of stuff. Once he's out of eyesight Samui reenters the mansion, where Mei can be seen walking down the flight of stairs.

"He's left... I should leave as well..." Mei says before she walks by Samui.

"I was wondering this..." Samui's words halt Mei from moving any further. "Do you really love Naruto?"

"What are you talking about?" Mei asks her in response.

"Women don't want to marry men who are that much younger than them, unless they're cougars... You arranged the wedding for a reason," Samui says, glaring at the red head.

"Maybe I like young men, who can grow into the type of man I can live for the rest of my life," Mei tells her, looking away so she wouldn't see the scowl she's making. "What are you getting at?"

"The way I'm hearing you, it sounds as if you're hiding something," Samui says to the water shadow. Mei turns back to look at her, the scowl now gone. Samui then bears her teeth and tells her, "You said you wouldn't forgive me if I harmed Naruto... I will say the same to you. Naruto deserves a good life, not a woman with two faces."

Mei continues to glare at her, even as she says, "I will never let that happen."

* * *

**_Chapter 39: Rising Your Power to Gold Part 1_**

* * *

Outside of the mansion a woman of Mei's beauty walks towards it. She holds up a letter, her red hair blowing in the breeze. "This is it..."

Elsewhere...

Long walks towards the Juubi, who rests within the forest of the Land of Fire. Its lone eye looks down at Long. "Who... Who am I?"

"Oh? So you can't remember who you are, huh?" Long asks, looking back at the black furred demon. Long then releases a golden light from his body, and he transforms from the humanoid form he possesses now, to a giant, green scale Asian dragon. He has black arms with golden claws, golden whiskers and horns, and red eyes. He rises up, easily equaling the Juubi in length/size.

Long then returns to his human size, impressing the demon. "Now you do it. You won't be able to move around like that."

The Juubi nods in agreement, before reverting to a human appearance. He actually looks like Killer Bee with dark gray hair. Long then says, "Nice. Now, I'll tell you what you can do to regain your memories."

Naruto's Home...

Naruto enters his room with a sad look on his face. He falls to the bed, ignoring the pleasant memories he recently made in this room. "I can't believe this... Mei never loved me for me..."

"Naruto!" Hinata enters the room after him, while he's still lying on the bed. "Naruto, you're not upset about Mei's ex trying to kill you, right?"

"...Not really..." he mutters, looking back at the blue haired woman. "I'm upset because Mei doesn't love me at all..."

"What? How can you say that?"

"She loves who I used to be, not who I am now," Naruto explains to her. "She doesn't care about me at all."

"That's not true! You are Eiji, so she must care about you!" Hinata tells him, grabbing hold of his shoulders. Naruto pushes her away and stands up, going to the closet and taking out his electric outfit. After dressing up he grabs his saucer, Rave Cielo and heads downstairs. "Naruto, wait!"

"I'm going. Don't follow me," he tells her, saying it loud enough for the other girls to hear him.

"Naruto, stop! You have to talk things out!" Sakura says to the red haired ninja. He comes before Mei and grabs Hakurei by the glowing eye sockets.

"Hey! What are you doing?"

"You're coming with me! I'll need someone to talk to!" Naruto tosses his saucer out and hops on, before flying through the doors outside of the mansion.

"Naruto, wait!" Mei calls out, hoping to chill him out. He simply stops for a moment and looks at her coldly.

"Eiji was right about you; you really are a terrible person. I don't think I can be with you." His words stun Mei to the core, because those were the same words Eiji said to her. As he leaves, she couldn't do anything but cry. Her words would be nothing but adding fuel to a fire. There's nothing she could say that would calm him down at this moment.

While flying out the door he goes by the red haired woman. He didn't get a good look at her, but he could tell there was something up about her. Mei. Sakura and Samui head out the door, watching Naruto reach the skies, with Sakura shouting, "What's with him? Why does he have to act so emotional?"

"It's the way of the dragon," Mei says, looking down with shame. "They're born with the ability to withhold their feelings, which are the source of their true powers. But being a half dragon, Naruto is unable to suppress his emotions because he is human. It's his greatest strength, and weakness."

"But we can't just...Oh, hello," Samui says, finally noticing the red head. "And you are?"

"My name is Amelia. I'm a close friend of Manabu," she says, slightly blushing at the mention of his name. Upon hearing that Sakura gasps realizing she's the woman he mentioned. "I heard he was living here. Is he?"

"Oh, yeah! He's out right now, but if you stay he'll show up again!" Sakura tells her, smiling and holding her hand out.

"Thank you..." She takes her hand and walks inside with Sakura.

Samui takes a moment to glare angrily at Mei. "Naruto has fought all this time believing in something false. Now his heart is broken because of what he has learned about you... I didn't want to believe it, but you never loved him at all."

She walks off, leaving Mei alone shell shocked.

...

Naruto flies towards the giant rock heads, landing on his father's. He holds up the skeleton before him, who says, "Ya calm yet? I need you with a clear head in order to kill Long."

"Why do I have to go through this mess? I never asked for this!" Naruto complains, lowering Hakurei's head to his stomach.

"Well, ya got it! Like he said, if you want to end this the easy way then just dump her," Hakurei suggests, his eyes looking up at his face now. "As much as I don't want you to, you can end this without fighting. The water princess doesn't really love you anyway."

That last sentence stings him hard. He looks away with an upset expression, unable to think about that. "Maybe it would be best if I left her..."

"Aren't you giving up too easily?" a voice speaks to him. Looking behind him he spots Tsunade standing there.

"Baachan? What are you doing here? Don't you have work?"

"I'm on break... But don't tell Shizune I was up here," Tsunade says, whispering that last part to him. Naruto sighs, knowing she's skipping her duties again. "Naruto, Mei told me of her relationship with Long and yourself last night, the whole truth. I can't say I forgive her for leading you on, but you can't stay mad at her forever."

"It's none of your business Baachan!" he snaps, sitting on his saucer. "Just stay out of it!"

"I can't stay out of it you brat! This Long person is after you, which means he'll attack Konoha! If I'm going to protect you I have to be involved!" she says to him.

"...Then I'll leave." This statement surprises the old lady, even though she should have seen it coming.

"What? Are you crazy?" Tsunade exclaims in shock.

"I'll leave Konoha and deal with Long myself! No one has to be involved in this crazy love triangle!" Naruto stands up on his saucer and prepares to fly off.

"You are a ninja of Konoha, and as long as you are you will listen to me!" Tsunade shouts at him.

"Like I said, this is none of your business! It's best that only I get hurt over this!" he shouts back at her. This throws Tsunade over to the deep end.

"YOU RED HAIRED DUMBASS! Since when is it okay for anyone to get hurt?" Tsunade screams, unable to hold in her anger. "You're staying here! If you leave you will lose your ninja position, and you'll never become Hokage!"

Naruto pauses for a moment. A part of him believes she's bluffing because that's his dream goal, but another part realizes that she really means it. He can only do what his emotions are telling him to. "So be it then."

"Naruto!" The red head takes flight, leaving Tsunade behind. He continues flying, leaving behind Konoha with an angry scowl and Hakurei.

"That was ballsy... What are you planning to do now?" Hakurei questions him, glaring into the dragon slayer's blue eyes.

"Shut up! I don't need any of your crap!" Naruto tells him, stabbing his eyes.

"Ow! Damn it!"

"I want your spells! Teach me a spell that can defeat that dragon!" Naruto tells the skull.

"...Fine. I've got no choice now..." Hakurei looks away angrily, mad that he has to pine after this kid who got lucky. "I'll teach you a powerful standard for high class demons like myself, and Long. It won't work for a human, but you're already at Long's level."

Naruto lands by a lake far away from Konoha. Hakurei is placed on a rock. "Okay, what do I do?"

"You can mold chakra, right? Performing spells is simple," he says, preparing to explain to him. "To mold chakra one much collect physical and spiritual energy together. For spells you must focus on releasing your spiritual energy while chanting the words."

"But how do I do that?" he asks, sitting down on his saucer and somehow calming down from earlier.

"The same way you mold chakra. It's easy when you know how."

Later...

"Maaagi Magico! Magiro Armi!" Naruto's visual blue chakra converts to a gold energy, his hair turning the same color as well. His energy molds armor before him, and his clothes are replaced with a white and gold spandex body suit. His armor merges with his body; he gains golden shoulder pads, leg bracers, shoes, chestplate, gauntlets and a helmet. A white and gold cape flaps from behind him.

His armor is still glowing, before it disperses and turns into glittering sparks of light.

"Damn! I almost had it!" Naruto complains, falling back with a sigh.

"Why did things have to go this way... I used to be the king-"

"-Of skulls! We know!" Naruto says, interrupting the talking skull. "Nobody cares about your stupid title or who you were!"

"Shut up!" Hakurei yells at him.

"I've almost got it down. Just need another try..." he says, crossing his arms over his chest while looking up in the air. He then turns to the skull and asks, "You got another spell for fighting Long?"

"...Well there are two spells a dragon slayer can use; the first is Ryuseidan," he says, using his magic to project an image. It shows Yusei, shocking the red head.

"Yusei? What's he doing up there?" Naruto asks in shock. Before he could say anymore he remembers Yusei and Manabu once fought against Hakurei as Madara.

"I saw this being used by him during our fight. He forms a core of condense magma inside of a fireball. It looks weak at first, but the resulting explosion of a normal one is at the same level as that Rasengan of yours," Hakurei explains.

"I can't use fire or earth chakra, let alone magma," Naruto replies, scratching the top of his head as he thought about it. "What's the next one?"

"Joutenryu no Hoko." At the mention of it Naruto's eyes widen in surprise. "It hits the pressure points inside of a human's body to convert over 90 percent of the user's human blood to dragon's. This raises their power to an incredible level, but the improper balance causes the user's mind and diet to go out of control, forcing them to eat humans. Those that do will give in to their desire and the silver energy released turns them into beasts, and those that don't will wither away.

"That makes it forbidden, but the effects may be different for you if you were to use that golden energy of yours," Hakurei finishes his explanation, showing Naruto a demonstration through Yusei. It shows him surrounded in a silver energy similar to his gold energy, and two separate Yuseis choosing a different path; one Yusei eats a human and turns into a dragon, while the other starves to death and becomes dust.

"Well, forget it. I don't need to learn that..." Naruto rises up and walks away, upset now thinking about Yusei.

"Hey, don't forget about me!" The skull shouts at him.

Before he could move any further, an explosion goes off and grabs their attention. Naruto looks off into the direction, spotting Sasuke walking up towards him. He's dressed wearing what appears to be Itachi's clothing. "Sasuke?"

"Hello, Naruto." Sasuke lifts his blade, Decalogue, over his shoulder. "I was hoping to find you."

"What? Why were you looking for me?" Naruto asks his rival. Sasuke blinks briefly, revealing the Eternal Sharingan.

"I have killed my brother twice; the first time was when he was alive, the second when Madara brought him back to life. We met again, and he told me before I burned him to ashes about a gift he gave you."

"A gift?" That's when Naruto remembers something Itachi did the last time he saw him.

"_You talk of nothing but a pipe dream. There are times when ninjas have to make painful choices, and compromise the things they want the most for what matters the most." On Itachi's words Naruto is suddenly reminded of what Jiraiya told him. To be suddenly reminded of the same thing is rather annoying. _

_With a firm, stern look in his eyes Naruto says, "Someone said that to me before…but there's no choice; if I give up on Sasuke because you say so, I'll regret it the rest of my life! That's not how I want to live!"_

_For an instance, Naruto could have sworn he saw Itachi smiling at him. And it wasn't a creepy smile, a demonic smile, or even a fake smile; it is a genuine smile, like the kind he receives from a good friend of his who clearly cares about him. _

_The smile takes him completely off guard, leaving enough time for a black bird to sneak into his mouth. Naruto almost chokes to death as it sneaks into his mouth and slithers down his throat. "I've given you some of my power. I hope the day never comes when you'll have to use it."_

"_What…what are you talking about? What's going on? Isn't it your group's goal to kidnap me!" Naruto shouts at him in a questioning voice. He falls to the ground after swallowing the bird, still choking and almost throwing up. _

"I now possess the Eternal Sharingan, fully functional and unable to make me blind ever again. And now that I've taken it for a test run, I will now use it on you," he says, pointing his sword at the dragon.

"...Fine." His agreement shocks Sasuke for a moment.

"Really?" he asks, cupping his chin. "No speech about how you wish to be friends again and want to bring me back?"

"No. I've gone through a lot after you captured me... I don't have the Kyubi inside of me anymore, but I do have people who care about me. I can't let myself get killed anymore until I defeat Long and set things right," Naruto says, stating his reason. "I'll fight you. If you live then I'll drag you back and pluck those eyes out of you. That way you can never deal with this stupid clan of hatred crap and the Uchiha will finally end. If you die then that's that. I don't want to deal with you anymore!"

Sasuke smiles a bit. "Fine. That's good. I'm glad you dropped that stupid good guy routine."

Naruto draws Rave Cielo and slashes at him, but he raises Decalogue to block like it weighed a ton. The sword then changes shape, turning into its tenth and final form. Naruto jumps back asking, "What's that?"

"Your sword has a tenth form, right? Well so does mine." Sasuke holds up his blade, which illuminates a dark mist. "Meet Shikkoku Mikoto!"

Naruto gains the dumbest look of confusion. "...What?"

"Shikkoku Mikoto! It means Jet Black Precious, and it's a remnant of my mother!" Sasuke swings his blade, releasing black flames towards him. Naruto slashes, cutting through the flames using the yellow energy of Dragonforce. His eyes show the bright green color and his skin has converted to scales. "Good. Give it your all."

"Rairyu no Hoko!" Naruto fires his stream of electricity at Sasuke.

"Runesave!" Sasuke slices through, and his sword converts to a bow. He draws on the string, and a black arrow materializes before it fires at Naruto.

"What the hell?" Naruto swings and releases his gold energy attack, but it fails to stall for the slightest second. Naruto lifts his sword at the last second and blocks, nearly saving his left shoulder from behind blown off. He is sent flying into the lake, his sword smoking from the arrow before it hit the water.

Sasuke walks towards the lake slowly, stopping right at the edge. "You're still holding back. I can only fight you if you're at full strength! Get u-"

Several energy swords fly out of the water, slashing Sasuke without warning several times. Naruto rises up from the water with Rave Cielo dragging along the muddy water. The color on the gem has become yellow and green, and his irises have the rectangular pupil.

"Nice ability," Naruto says as he walks over to him.

"You as well. If it weren't for Susanoo protecting me that might have hurt," Sasuke says, holding his hand up to reveal bone marks. Naruto's eyes take notice of the rest of his body, and his eyes widen in shock when he realizes the same marks are all over his body.

"What's that?"

(Kyuukyoku no Yami, the Ultimate Darkness, from Kamen Rider Kuuga plays in the background)

"This is Susanoo, the final ability of the Sharingan." Susanoo rises from Sasuke's body, flaring a dark purple flame around its body. It forms a bow and fires at Naruto.

He disappears in a flash, avoiding the attack thanks to Kuro Getsuga. 'He's fast! I barely got away from that!'

Sasuke fires an arrow from his own weapon, trapping Naruto in an explosion that burns most of his clothes and the hairs on his body. He falls to the ground clutching his body painfully. "Gah! That really burns!"

"That was suppose to do more than burn," Sasuke says, preparing to fire a second arrow.

"Sasuke, I said I would stop your stupid rampage of revenge... And I will do it, no matter what." Naruto's statement leads to him firing a round from Omega Arts to block the arrow, which pierces him in the shoulder. Still, despite the pain he remains unswayed, the demon chakra from the Kyubi rising up.

He rises up to his feet and growls, his red energy mixing with his green and yellow chakra. The two combine into a golden energy and his eyes go normal black iris and green colored. He then opens his mouth and roars, firing Rairyu no Hoko at Sasuke.

"Runesave!" Sasuke blocks the attack using his sealing sword, but the force of it pushes him back a little.

Naruto quickly grabs hold of Rave Cielo, its power channeling his energy into his sword and calming him down. He sighs, glad to be back under control. "Here I come!"

"Susanoo will raze you to the ground!" Sasuke absorbs Susanoo in his body.

"Maaagi Magico! Magiro Armi!" Naruto says, repeating the spell he used before. His clotehs change to a full spandex white and gold body suit, and his energy converts into metallic armor before it assembles onto him.

(Kyuukyoku no Yami ends and Rising Your Power to Gold from Kuuga replaces it)

Clad in armor, Naruto slits his left thumb and performs five seals. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

"What kind of jutsu is that?" Sasuke questions as he summons one of his summoning creatures, Gamabunta.

"Huh? What?" Gama looks around shocked at appearing here suddenly. He looks down to see Naruto in his golden form. "You?"

"Hey. I'm going to need your help in this," Naruto tells the giant toad. He holds out Rave Cielo and summons four energy blades, sending them at him.

"Bakuensaiga!" Sasuke blows up each sword, destroying them like they were made of glass. His attention fixes itself upon Naruto, as he raises his sword and forms the Dark Twin Dragon Sword.

Naruto comes running towards him, with Gamabunta standing behind the ninja with his blade at the ready. Susanoo rises up from Sasuke's body and blocks the toad and his weapon, using a shield, and the two ninjas clash.

Sasuke manage to knock away his sword using his own two, and as Naruto mentally shouts, 'Shit,' Sasuke slashes him across his armored chest. Twin releases of fire and ice cover his chest, but his armor remains in one piece. Naruto backs away from the recoil of the attack, leaving Sasuke a chance to move in for the kill.

"Bakuhatsu no Kenjutsu: Bakuensaiga Daikenkiri! (Exploding Sword Technique: Exploding Flame Crushing Fang Great Sword Cut)" Sasuke draws the Dai Kanji in midair using his fire affinity, leaving Naruto to stab his sword into the ground and produce a wall of lightning to over power the explosion.

"Stubborn punk!" Gamabunta struggles to push Susanoo away, but the spectral being punches him to the ground.

Naruto jumps out of the explosion Sasuke created, resting Rave Cielo on his shoulder, and calls his saucer out to stand on. Naruto then opens his mouth and fires Tenryu no Hoko.

"Wind makes fire stronger. You should know that!" Sasuke forms an arrow using Shikkoku Mikoto and fires straight into the hurricane, which pierces through like it was nothing. Naruto leans back on his saucer, so much he flips upside down and avoids him, and as he spins upward to face him he fires an ice bullet from Omega Arts.

Sasuke blocks using the sword form, which only freezes slightly before the ice melts. Naruto jumps off of his saucer, landing on top of Gama Bunta's head. He manages to stand back up, just as Naruto tells him, "Use that oil thing!"

"I don't know what you're planning, but fine. Gamayudan!" Gamabunta prepares the oil in his mouth using handseals.

"Final Arcana!" Naruto throws the black blade of the Chaos Sword before the toad oil. It releases black electricity as it travels towards Sasuke and his Susanoo being. The oil lights on fire from the lightning, giving the impression of a flamethrower, and blasts Sasuke.

He guards himself using Susanoo's power, which isn't that much of a big problem even though he's tired. Gama Bunta then grabs Naruto and throws him towards Sasuke, while he reverts the Twilight Star to its tenth form. He raises his sword before him, gathering a scraping wind around the edges of the blade.

"This is my strongest wind attack! Nijiboshi no Kenjutsu!" Naruto pierces into the flames, coming out the other end covered in swirling flames empowered by his wind. Four extra, energy blades fly from his sword, covered in fire as well. Each blade attaches onto the golden tip of his true sword as he holds it forward, slicing through Susanoo's arm. The energy swords disappear and he comes before Sasuke, before slashing and cutting the ribs protecting him and leaving a diagonal cut on his body from his heart to his right waist. "Bakuryusei Giri!"

(Rainbow Star Sword Technique - Exploding Dragon Star Cut)

(Rising Your Power To Gold ends)

Sasuke falls backwards, that last attack doing the trick. Naruto drops his sword, and soon his armor disperses. His hair returns to normal as well, and he's now tired. Gamabunta also disappears, seeing his work done. "Sasuke... You're still alive, aren't you?"

Sasuke looks up at Naruto, Susanoo's power retreating inside of him. "I guess you win this one. You're the better man."

"Sasuke, what were you trying to do? Why come after me this time?" Naruto asks him, placing a hand on the wound he made.

Sasuke cringes, before answering, "I wanted to confirm something. My brother was brought back to life, and I realized something; I never wanted revenge. I couldn't bring myself to kill anyone from Konoha, especially Tenten. What I really wanted, was to end my family's eternal suffering."

"What?"

"The Uchiha are a family cloaked in blood; they can only reach their highest levels of strength by killing the people they care about. The Mangekyou Sharingan, the Eternal Mangekyou, and Madara are the only reasons our family is as torn apart as it is. I wanted to erase that horrible history, so I can die with the satisfaction that my parents didn't die for nothing," he explains, spitting up blood on the Uzumaki's face. "I killed Danzo, Hakurei and his men killed the others who sided with him during the war, and now no one else knows of the past the Uchiha went through. All that's left are a couple of people who know, and me. Once I die, the Uchiha will be erased from everyone's mind as the villains of Konoha, and I'll finally be-"

Naruto kicks him in the head. "$#!T! What the hell?"

"I don't care at this point if you live or die, because you've lost the privilege of being my best friend, but Tenten is a different story! I cannot let her become sad and vengeful because your life ended! That's not in me!" Naruto shouts at him, gaining a shocked expression on his face. "You're going to live, no matter what! End this stupid chain of hatred by living!"

"...Naruto..." Sasuke looks up at him.

"You have to live! You're not going to change anything by dying!" he tells him, lifting the dark haired warrior up on his shoulder. Naruto begins to walk with him, but is suddenly stopped by a fireball landing before him.

In the fires a man walks out, revealing himself to be Long. He smiles a little at Naruto, saying, "So, we meet eachother for the first time. Naruto Uzumaki, right?"

"Long?" he questions him, glaring angrily at the golden dragon.

"That was a nice battle you had, but I assume you're too tired to do anything now." Long fires a ball of stone towards Naruto and Sasuke, which becomes bigger as it rolls along the ground and the earth builds up. Naruto jumps out of the way, avoiding the stone ball which continues until it reaches the lake. "It'll be a splendid end for a monster like you."

"A monster?" Sasuke asks, looking at the red haired ninja.

"I am Naruto Uzumaki, the future Hokage of Konoha! I am not some dragon king who got power hungry and killed people just to be with a woman!" Naruto barks at him, snarling angrily at his accusation.

"So she finally told you..." Long holds out his hand, summoning a ball of fire and earth. The two merge together, forming a miniature meteor of dark red flames. "Ryuseidan!"

He fires it at them, leaving Naruto to run away from the magma bomb towards Rave Cielo. Naruto grabs it, but the explosion knocks them further away. Sasuke rolls off of Naruto, who has received horrible burns from that bomb. "Naruto!"

"I see. I guess I was afraid for nothing," Long says, forming several more in mid air. "It seems you can only negate lightning and wind. Eiji could combat all five of my elements, so I couldn't stop him at all, but you can only use two elements! You can still do damage to me, but I won't let that happen. Ryuseidan!"

Long fires at them once more, but an energy slash cuts the sphere in half. It looks as if it has cut through the entire dimension, not just the bomb. It explodes, and everything fixes back into place. Manabu lands onto the battlefield, glaring at the dragon. Naruto shouts, "Manabu? What are you doing here?"

"I tracked you using Sage mode. My mastery has made me strong enough to sense everyone," he tells him, turning towards Long. "Mei and Haku came with me."

"Naruto!" As if on cue, Haku comes running down towards them with Mei behind him. Spotting Long he draws forth the Sea Lancer and prepares for battle. Once they reach Naruto and Sasuke Mei helps Naruto on his back, taking a look at his wounds. "Take Sasuke and going!"

"Haku, wait! Don't fight Long!" Mei tells him, but he continues to rush into battle.

"V Slash!" Using water he slashes at Long, who simply steps away to avoid each double slash.

"Maaagi Magico! Magiro Armi!" Using the armor spell Long encases himself in his purple suit, the same one he battled against Hakurei with all those years ago. Raising his lance he jabs at Haku, so fast he couldn't see it coming.

Long then grabs Haku by his hair and lifts him up, showing just how big he is now in comparison. "Omega Cannon!"

Manabu fires at Long from behind using a Jyuken Gattai, which blasts him and forces the dragon to drop Haku. The ice user rolls away from him, and fires an ice rocket at Long's head from a distance.

The rocket explodes and encases his upper body in ice, but he manages to break out with ease, like it was nothing more than sheet. "Come on. Entertain me more!"

"We're not here to show you a good time!" Manabu shouts at him, running up to cut him from behind. His sword bounces off his armor, and Long retaliates by smacking him with his tail.

"Of course you are. All lifeforms are put on this planet to serve and feed those higher than them! Your job is to satisfy me, just like the Uchiha brothers Madara and Izuna!"

"...What?" Sasuke raises his head in anger upon hearing that. "You're the one who told Madara about the Mangekyou and drove them to become like this?"

"Ah... When you say it like that-" Long turns his attention towards Sasuke, planting his lance into the ground with a loud thud. "-You make it seem like I'm some sort of monster."

"You did do it, you bastard!" Sasuke gets up on his two feet and charges at Long. "Bakuensaiga!"

His attack strikes Long in the chestplate, but within the smoke cloud the Uchiha is smacked to the ground by his tail. Manabu sneaks at him from the back, but Long jabs him in the gut with the back of the lance. "Not entertaining at all."

Manabu, Haku and Sasuke regroup before Long. Manabu raises Starlight Rave onto his shoulder, pushing down on the lever three times and pressing the gem. "Let's attack him at once."

"Got it!" Haku adjusts his lance into gun mode, and aims at Long.

"Combing our strengths... Whatever!" Sasuke calls forth his bow and arrow and prepares to fire at him.

All three fire at Long: Manabu swings and sends a dimension cutting stream, Haku fires a pressurized water shot, and Sasuke let's loose an arrow. All three attacks swirl together as they travel towards Long.

Long raises his lance high up into the sky, calling forth the power of all five elements together. The dragon grabs hold of his lance with both hands, and in a single swing he destroys the arrow, the water stream, and the dimensional sword beam. The firing squad didn't have enough time to be surprised or react before Long sends a condensed stream of electricity and fire towards them, resulting in an explosion that consumes them.

As the smoke cleared Manabu, Haku and Sasuke fall to the ground in pain. Neither of them could stand from that devastating blow. Naruto calls out to his friends, "Manabu! Haku! Sasuke!"

"You're next, Uzumaki!" Long says, pointing his lance over to him. "I'll finally end my sister's tainted bloodline with this."

He walks over to Naruto, ignoring the three he destroyed just seconds ago to focus on his real target. "Ryuseidan!"

He sends his meteor bomb towards Naruto, but Mei moves him out of the way so she would take the full hit. "Mei!"

Long halts for a moment to ask, "Why do you suffer so? He's just a human who will age and die before you do. There's no point."

"I will never leave him," Mei speaks as she ignores her own pain.

"Naruto Uzumaki is not Eiji! He's simply a human reincarnation! There's no way he can replace him!" Long shouts angrily, trudging towards the two.

"I don't care about that anymore!" she screams at him. This shocks both Naruto and Long.

"Eh?"

Mei turns back to Naruto, a sad look on her face. "Naruto, you said before that I was a horrible woman who only cared about you in the past... That was true. I fell in love with only Eiji, and I wanted only him. But when I got to know you, I realized you were him, and at the same time you weren't. You were emotional, did things without thinking, but just like Eiji you saw me for who I am.

"That's what drew me to him in the first place... Because while he saw me as a person with flaws, everyone else only complimented me for my looks." This statement shocks all four of the guys, the human ones anyway, especially considering Naruto could see her tears close up. His mind then remembers what he said to her, and now he feels bad. "I couldn't help but be jealous of Hina, because she was the kind, smart person Eiji always complimented. I couldn't take hearing what he said about me, and I killed myself because of it... I just wanted someone to care about me for who I am, not what I look like."

"Mei..." Naruto mutters as he looks up to her. He wraps his arms around her, tears coming from his eyes. "I'm sorry. I said all those horrible things about you, without realizing how hurt it really was..."

"...I'm sorry too. I probably didn't take into consideration your feelings," she says with a smile, before hugging him with all her affection.

"Hey, I'm still here!" Long growls, forming a second Ryuseidan. "Don't ignore me you fools!"

Mei pushes Naruto away, getting hit by his attack once more. This time she falls unconscious, unable to take the attack this time. Naruto's eyes widen in fear seeing that. "MEI!"

"Mizuhime-chan!" Long gasps in shock seeing his attack damage the woman he's adored for the longest. He then glares at Naruto with hatred. "This is your fault, human!"

"YOU MOTHER FUCKER!" Naruto lunges at high speed at Long, Kaminari Punching him hard in the face. The hit is strong enough to destroy the helmet, knock out his teeth, force him to spit blood, and knock his eyes straight.

Long collapses to the ground, clutching his face in pain. "GAAAH! IT'S MORE PAINFUL THAN I REMEMBER!"

Naruto lunges at Long once more, his anger taking over his reason. Long snaps his fingers, shouting, "Get him," and no second later do the clouds grow dark. A dark mist flies down at Naruto, trapping him inside and sending him away from Long. Naruto releases his energy to expel the dark mist, and his eyes widen in shock seeing who is in front of him now.

"Killer Bee?" Yes. Standing before him is Killer Bee, or the Juubi borrowing his form as he doesn't realize. The ten tailed beast transforms, turning into the monster Naruto fought against before. "You!"

The beast fires a beam of darkness at him, blasting Naruto into the ground. He rises up to his feet, growling as he looks at the beast. Looking up at his grown hair he sees that his golden Dragonforce has worn off. "Leave Killer Bee alone!"

"My tenth tail, return it now!" The Juubi orders him. Naruto looks looks off to the side and sees Rave Cielo resting by Mei, and using his electromagnetism to capture his sword and wield it.

"Kill him."

(Shout in The Moonlight from Kamen Rider Kiva plays in the background)

"Crescent Wave!" A sword beam comes out of nowhere and slashes him from behind, cutting off his right wing. As the rest of his wing bleeds Long looks at who did the deed, and spots a figure leaping over him. That person lands between the Juubi and Naruto, revealing himself to be Manabu carrying Sasuke and Haku with one hand.

"Manabu! Get away!" Manabu ignores his words and glares at Long, his eyes revealing a dark yellow color with slit irises. What got to Naruto the most is seeing Starlight Rave has transformed into the black crescent moon blade Rouki owns. Manabu tosses Haku and Sasuke over to him, who catches them easily. "Manabu!"

Manabu bends down a bit while crossing his arms over his chest and face, his blade still in his left hand. Before any of them could register it, he springs up, throwing his arms off to the side and howling out into the sky. The wolf-like howl sends shivers down the young dragon slayer's spine.

Long grits his teeth angrily, already pissed at his face being torn apart, and says, "So, you want me to kill you too, Rouki?"

After listening to the dragon god Manabu bends down on his right knee and digs his right hand into the ground, resting the Twilight Star in his left hand on his shoulder. He growls lightly as he eyes him, his wolf eyes never leaving him. Baring his fangs, which are actual fangs, he tells Naruto in a growling tone, "Get going!"

"What?" Naruto questions him.

"Take Mei, Sasuke and Haku, and get out! I'll stall as long as I'm conscious!" he replies, lunging at the Juubi and kicks him in the face.

"Manabu..." Reluctantly, Naruto grabs Mei and uses his saucer to take flight, escaping the demons out for his life.

"Oh no you don't!" Long fires a tiny Ryuseidan at Manabu, which knocks him off balance and causes him to drop Mei.

"Mei!" Naruto is about to save her, but that's when Manabu leaps towards her and catches the woman. He then jumps away to avoid the Juubi's Menacing Ball. "Manabu!"

"Get going!" he snarls, and so Naruto is forced away. The wind blows in his face as he leaves, despite not wanting to. While he escapes Manabu turns to face the two demons, giving out a growl.

* * *

Manabu: And that ends this chapter. Next time Long heads to Konoha with the Juubi, me and Mei. At the same time Hakurei confesses one last thing, and teaches Naruto, Haku and Sasuke spells to fight Long.

Rouki: So, I'm back huh?

Manabu: Yeah. Just like the Kishin from Zelda in ALF.


	40. Intermission

Intermission

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, One Piece, etc.

Ten Commandments: Hello everyone. This is TCM, in person. We're just about ready to finish this story, but before we do let's recap on everything that has happened so far. I probably should have done this back when Naruto trained to become a sage, but oh well.

* * *

The story begins with Naruto at age 7 finding out about his family and his heritage. He moves into his family home where he meets Manabu Yuuki, a friend of his parents. Manabu promises to train him to become a better ninja and hands him the original version of his weapon, the Ten Celestial Transformation Sword Twilight Star. He eventually meets up with Mei Terumi, who reveals herself to be his fiance. After a short meeting she hands him a scroll with lizard summonings on it and promises to meet him once more when he's older.

At the age of 12 he graduates from the ninja academy with 4 forms of the Twilight Star unlocked: the Crystal Sword Chromedread, the Alchemic Sword Gilgamesh, the Gravity Sword Kuro Getsuga and the Solar Sword Shining Angelus. He gets put on the same team as Sasuke and Sakura under Kakashi. After that he learns that Manabu has finally gotten a C ranked mission from the Hokage, and after finding out he's in trouble tries to sneak out of Konoha alone to help him. Sasuke and Sakura find out and decide to follow him, with Kakashi catching them. But instead of a punishment at that moment he brings them along to help Manabu.

They reach Waves, where Manabu tells them that he's being chased by Zabuza and his partner Kaizen. There they also learn the surface walking exercise, which Naruto manages to master. With that down Manabu takes him to Kirigakure to get help from Mei, but they get stopped by Kaizen who awakens Naruto's dragon slayer bloodline. Naruto and Manabu pulverizes the lightning user and head back to help Kakashi and the others, who were facing Haku and Zabuza. Naruto fights Haku in Sasuke's place, overcome by his demonic chakra, and trounces him. Kakashi manages to kill Zabuza.

The next time Haku wakes up Naruto comforts him and apologizes, offering to help him move on with his life. With his fiance being the Mizukage he could pull it off. Haku agrees and they quickly become friends; the next day Manabu takes Haku to see Mei, and Team Seven head back home. At Konoha the Hokage tells Naruto about his bloodline a little, and that he will have to sanction more than one wife to revive his family clan. Out for freetime he runs into trouble when Suna ninjas Kankurou and Temari are badgering Konohamaru. With Sasuke's assistance Naruto gets him free, and Gaara takes his siblings away.

The following week the Chunin exams begin, and Naruto fights Lee for a short time. He also reunites with Haku and meets his team Orin and Kenta. After the written exams they head into the forest for their next exam. There, the group gets separated by a sonic boom and Naruto is carried off by a snake. He breaks out of it and meets Team Samui, managing to escape from them by shocking Samui's breasts. Meanwhile, Orochimaru curses Sasuke with his seal and weakens Haku. He also fights Naruto, placing the five pronged seal on him before he could unleash more of his power. The next morning Sakura is attacked by Team Sound, ninjas she could never defeat herself and even Haku has trouble against. Sasuke wakes up with the Curse Seal active and crushes Zaku, using the Ten Commandments of Sinful Darkness Sword Decalogue.

He cools his jets just in time before he kills Zaku, and the team leaves them with a scroll. Naruto wakes up from his dream, and after some time Haku heads for his team. On their way to the tower, they get ambushed by a team, one Naruto manages to knock out singlehandedly. Once they reach the tower it's nothing but relaxation for the next two days, until Naruto meets Samui and her team again. She challenges him to a fight for groping her accidentally, claiming she has to kill him for disgracing her family. Samui loses though, and begs for him to take her as his woman, and he wouldn't have if she didn't remind him she would die and he could marry more than one woman.

At the start of the preliminaries the battles go on: Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, Dosu, Temari, Neji, Gaara, Kankuro, Haku, Samui, Shikamaru, and Shino all manage to pass, and within a month have to prepare to fight eachother. Naruto gets training from a man named Jiraiya, who he catches peeking on Mei, and gets the seal released off of him. Sasuke is trained by Kakashi, and Haku gets help from his friends. Sakura although can't get any support or training from Kakashi so she's forced to quit, while Dosu is slaughtered by Gaara. After his training ends, with him learning his elements are wind and lightning, he gains a roommate in Samui and the final round of the Chunin Exams begin. Naruto fights against Neji, appalled that he would harm Hinata like that a month ago. Using the Kyubi's chakra he manages to defeat Neji, gaining a standing ovation. After Sasuke battles Gaara, he loses control and Orochimaru begins a war on Konoha.

Sasuke chases down Gaara to stop him, but ends up being saved along with Sakura by Naruto who utilizes his wind dragonslayer powers and summoning skills. The war ends with Orochimaru sealed with the Hokage inside of the Shinigami's stomach, and soon after Naruto gains another wife in Sakura. Samui begins to warm up to him and Naruto is soon on his mission to find a new Hokage with Jiraiya. While in a town Itachi ambushes him with Kisame, but are forced to leave when he puts Sasuke in a coma and Jiraiya returns. On the way to Tsunade, Naruto learns the Rasengan, and wins enough money to not rely on his parents' leftover funds. He also meets Tsunade and wins her earnings, and later meets with Shizune. Some time later Kaizen returns with Honatsu, an artificial fire dragon slayer, who wants her to join a man named Hao.

Naruto and the Sannin, including Shizune, manage to fight back and kill Kaizen. Naruto plays Tsunade in a final game of gamble, and wins her attendance to Konoha and her necklace. Back in Konoha Naruto begins to breath a sigh of relief as things are returning to normal, with Tsunade having healed Sasuke of the Tsukiyomi. Meeting Sasuke the Uchiha challenges him to a match, which have no conclusive winner. Later Naruto goes on a date with Sakura and gains his fourth wife in Hinata. The next day he is chosen for a mission in Kusa with Shikamaru, Samui and Sasuke. After it's over Naruto and Sasuke have their rematch, where it's revealed Orochimaru has control over his body still. Hao reveals himself after the long fight, and kidnaps Sasuke before impairing Naruto. Later in Konoha Naruto begs Jiraiya to train him and make him stronger so he can bring back Sasuke, despite his objection. Eventually he concedes, and they leave the village for three years. At the same time Hao implants a crystal in Sasuke's body to give him dragon slayer powers.

Three years later Naruto returns to Konoha and rejoins Team Seven with new member Sai. Their first mission; venture to Suna and save Gaara from Akatsuki. As long as it took, they almost failed; Gaara lives, Sasori is dead, and Manabu is on his way to become a sage. Around that time Sasuke betrays Hao and impairs him of the biju inside of him. He also takes five of his henchmen with him, leaving only Moka with him. There it is also revealed that Hao has two more people working for him, Sheji and Long. Before his battle with Deidara, one of Sasuke's new henchmen Mizuki goes mad when he discovers Naruto is looking for Sasuke, and sends summoned monsters after him. He then challenges him personally, and loses. That's when a swordsman with a black wolf mask on takes him. Later, Naruto and Itachi meet, and he gives him something. Leaving, Naruto begins to question his friendship with Sasuke thanks to Haku. Not long after that does Sasuke reunite with him, who challenges him to a swordsman match. Naruto uses the Soul Sword Edge Daemon and brutally beats Sasuke, verbally torturing him as well.

Haku manages to snap him out of it, but that's when Sasuke uses his own demon sword Sacrifar to kill him. Haku gives his own life and information about Itachi to save him, and almost dies. Naruto, convinced that he is dead, unknowingly releases Dragonforce and pounds Sasuke to a bloody pulp. Haku reveals he's alive, which calms the dragon, and Sasuke escapes with help from his henchmen. Some time later Sasuke finds and challenges Itachi, resulting in a long match where Sasuke has lost his dragon slayer powers. Honatsu and Genbu betray Byakko and Seiryu, revealing they were never with Hao in the first place. Itachi's illness gives out on him, and Madara presents himself and tells him the truth of Itachi and the Uchiha, who gained the Mangekyou by a vision from a dragon. Later on in Konoha, Naruto learns that Jiraiya is dead and meets his uncle on his mother's side Yusei. He dies soon afterwards but tells him he's a good friend of Manabu and to never use a dragon technique that will turn him into a dragon. Naruto goes to training at Mt. Myoboku with Manabu to prepare for the leader of Akatsuki.

There, Manabu becomes possessed by a black wolf mask and becomes Rouki, just as dimension traveling alternate versions of Naruto and Madara appear before them; specifically, Naruto Kazama and Madara from Angel Eyes and Kaimuto Namikaze from Echo of Spiraling Heart. Together the trio kill Madara and return to their home, while Naruto continues his training. Meanwhile, Sasuke works with Akatsuki to capture the Hachibi, and fail. At the same time the Nanabi reaches Kirigakure just in time to fight a giant spider woman who kidnapped the Mizukage for one Long. Haku fights her, but it is only by Mei's hands herself when the spider lady dies. In Konoha the six paths of Pain and Konan reach Konoha, where they begin their search for Naruto. With no real knowledge of him, they couldn't properly fight back and the village is destroyed; Samui and Kakashi having died. Naruto returns and goes Duke Nukem on five of the Pains, before releasing his demon side on the last and Rouki. After a pep talk with his father, Naruto returns to normal and defeats the last Pain, before having another pep talk with the mastermind and Konan. After long convincing and a back story, Naruto gains Nagato's trust and gives his life for him by reviving everyone he's killed since coming to Konoha. Naruto, becoming his replacement, is promised by Konan to be protected by her forever.

Returning to Konoha, Naruto discovers five monsters who are working to kill him; Hakurei a skeleton ghost, Magellan the Sasquatch who was Genbu, Mizuki reborn as an Anubis, Sheji a Basilisk, and Rouki a Chimera. Rouki challenges Naruto with Manabu and Samui at stake, and upon returning to Konoha begins to heal himself in preparations for his duel. That morning Sasuke heads for Konoha to get revenge for Itachi, and meets Tenten who he earlier befriended and an enraged Hao. Naruto heads for his duel with Rouki, and after a long battle where Hinata and Sakura jump in, he releases a new golden power that allows him to trounce Rouki and free Samui and Manabu. Sasuke unlocks Susanoo and uses Amaterasu to kill Hao, not on purpose though. Madara arrives on the scene to capture him. Returning to Konoha, Naruto learns that Madara is indeed Hakurei and is working for Long, thanks to Manabu who has absorbed Rouki's memories. The next day Madara leaves Sasuke with him, who utilizes the Sharingan and the Ten Swords of Darkness' new form to capture Naruto. With Naruto missing Manabu goes out to find him, by beating the info out of Rouki's only friend Magellan. Naruto, just about almost drawn of the Kyubi's chakra, is saved when a kunai comes out of another dimension and transports him to an alternate universe where he's dead and ninjas are replaced with soldiers.

Naruto works together with them out of guilt after seeing his mother, and fights against Akatsuki. He joins up with the two Narutos from before again to destroy Madara once again, unlocking the tenth sword Rave Cielo in the process. After defeating Madara Naruto Kazama transports them to this dimension, where Hakurei/Madara has launched a full scale war on the Shinobi Continent looking for Naruto. Searching for Madara, the trio run into Hinata, Haku who manages to kill Honatsu, Sheji and Mizuki. Kazama transports him to another dimension, while they fight Sheji. A fourth Naruto named Shiki fights Sheji and befriends a dragon named Omicron, killing Sheji in an explosion. The other three Narutos fight Madara and reduce him to nothing but a skull. There he tells Naruto about why he worked for Long, who Long is and what he's after. Returning to their worlds, Kaimuto and Kazama bid farewell to Naruto who finds Killer B in trouble. Long then makes his appearance, absorbing his soul inside the statue to revive the Juubi. Thanks to Konan, he and Omicron escape and return to Konoha. There Naruto tells Tsunade and Mei what Long is and what he's after. After sex with Hinata and then sex with Sakura and Samui the next morning Mei tells Naruto the whole truth; Mei is the reincarnation of a water dragon spirit who was princess of an entire continent, and Long was obsessed with her so much he killed all her other suitors. Long also killed Eiji's parents, one of them being his sister Julia, who is also the one person Mei loves. In addition Eiji is Naruto from that time. Eiji manages to kill Long, but because he never loved Mei to begin with he marries someone else, and Mei dies out of grief.

Believing Mei only wanted to marry him because she thinks he's Eiji Naruto leaves. He kills time by learning spells by Hakurei and fighting Sasuke, eventually converting him to his side for good. Naruto is then ambushed by Long and the Juubi, and even Manabu and Haku couldn't stop them. Long captures Mei and Manabu uses Rouki's powers to fight back, giving Naruto, Haku and Sasuke the chance to escape.

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TCM: And that ends this chapter. Next time we will continue with the story.


	41. Rising Your Power To Gold Part 2

**_Naruto and The Water Princess_**

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the other stuff. Let's see... One Piece, Fairy Tail, Static and there was one more... Rave!

Insert Song: Rising Your Power To Gold by Norio Sakai

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**_Chapter 40: Rising Your Power to Gold Part 2  
_**

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Naruto continues his flight towards Konoha, unable to believe he left Manabu behind. Even as he flies on his saucer with all three of the important people in his life still hanging to life by a string, he couldn't help but wonder what could happen to his mentor.

"Hey!" a voice shouts out. Naruto looks down and spots Hakurei still where he left him. "Pick me up too!"

"Oh yeah, forgot about him." Naruto flies down to the talking skull and Haku picks him up.

"This is Hakurei, the one who posed as Madara, right?" Haku asks as he looks into the eyes of the talking skull.

Manabu crashes to the ground, his body injured from having to battle both Long and the Juubi at once. Long stomps on his head, keeping him down in the dirt. "This has been a rather eventful day. I've weakened that dragon slayer enough to kill him, and Mei is now in my arms. If you weren't around I'd have gotten my goals finished!"

"Get off my head!" Manabu growls as he tries to push him off.

Long leers his head down at the man and asks, "I'm a little curious though... Where are you from?"

"Why do you care? I'm not from the Shinobi Continent," Manabu replies, not caring to know what he's planning.

"Oh, so you're from the Ventus Mainland then." He snickers a bit and steps off of Manabu's head, before grabbing him by the hair and lifting him up. "Well that's good. I've been meaning to go there and make my presence known to the demons roaming there. I think I'll stop by after I kill Naruto, you know, see the sights, try the wine, and _BLOW IT THE FUCK UP_!"

Manabu stares at him with a shocked look on his face. "What?"

"I'm sorry, I used to be more calm. But now, I'm _livid_... _Entirely livid_," Long says with a hateful look on his face as he stares at Manabu. "I've become this way the moment I discovered what Rouki was planning... And now he gets in the way again..."

"Look, it doesn't matter what you do to me. Naruto will still defeat you the moment I'm gone," Manabu says as he gives up resisting.

"Maybe, but that's why I'm not gonna kill you." Long makes an unsightly grin towards the spiky haired swordsman. "Juubi, hold this guy inside your body until I can figure out what to do with him."

The Juubi approaches Manabu and opens its mouth, falling down towards the swordsman to devour him whole.

Later...

"You idiot!" Tsunade shouts at Naruto angrily upon hearing the news of what happened when he left. "It's reasons like this that I wanted you to stay here; you don't think and it ends up costing other people's lives!"

"When did that happen?" he questions her. He can't remember a time when someone died because of him, but that's when he remembers when Samui and Kakashi along with others in the village died from Pain's invasion. "Oh yeah... That's why I wanted to leave. I didn't want anyone else caught up in my problems."

"THAT'S NOT HOW PEOPLE WILL REACT!" Tsunade shouts, throwing a bottle of alcohol at his face. Being as powerful as he is now it doesn't hurt at all. She then rises up from her seat and grabs him by the shoulder, saying, "People who have honest and good hearts aren't going to just let someone they like throw their lives away!"

"It's none of their business! If I die then that's my thing and no one else's!" Tsunade slaps his cheeks angrily.

"SINCE WHEN THE FUCK IS IT OKAY FOR ANYONE TO DIE?" she screams in his ears, speaking so loud her voice reverberates through the walls. "If someone you cared about was going to let himself die trying to solve their own issue would you? Of course not! Because you wouldn't have gone after Sasuke!"

Hearing that last sentence causes Naruto to have a realization; just because it's his problem doesn't mean others will just stay out, and his attitude towards this entire situation is no different than Sasuke's. Tsunade then releases him and says, "Naruto, people do lots of crazy things in life, especially when they feel passionate towards it. But if what you're doing makes sense, then your friends will always be there to help you whether you like it or not."

His eyes widen even more as he looks at Tsunade speaking, and feeling the tears fall onto his face from her eyes. Naruto lowers his head and sighs, giving a depressed tone there. Realizing his mistake, he says, "I'm sorry... I'm sorry for everything... I won't do it again."

Tsunade then walks to her seat away from him, saying, "As long as you understand... Now get out of my office."

Naruto immediately leaves the office, heading straight for his home. Along the way he spots Konan waiting for him in the middle of the street. She has an indigo shirt that exposes her shoulders, upper back and belly button, which is pierced just like her bottom lip, but also flows down like a cape. She also has black pants with blue sandals. Around her right arm is the bandage that holds the wound together.

"Konan, you out of the hospital already?" he asks her.

"Naruto, did you face Long again?" Konan asks him, ignoring his question.

"...Yeah," he says looking down off to the side. "I thought I could do this myself and went after him."

"Naruto-" she says before she walks closer to him. "-Even if you're the only one who can stop him, it's a totally different thing for the Juubi. As of this moment both of them are after you: The Juubi to reclaim the missing piece of its soul, and Long to end the Dragon Slayers.

"But there's another problem," she continues, stopping before him. "Your actions can cause grief and desperation to rise in your friends. That's why Manabu made a deal with Rouki so he could become strong enough to stand by your side."

"He did?" Naruto's eyes lower in response to her answer, feeling even more upset hearing that. "Manabu..."

"He really cares about you, just like me," Konan says, placing her left hand on his shoulder. "You're Jiraiya-sama, Yahiko, and Nagato's precious heirloom, so I will dedicate my life to you, and Manabu has grown to view you as family in the time you've spent together..."

"Yeah, he's family to me too!" Naruto says, finally cheering up.

"I won't be able to help you fight against Long or the Juubi as of my condition... But I can give you some advice I learned from Manabu." Konan leans up to his ear and begins to speaks to him softly.

Later...

"Maybe we could cut his head off!" Sasuke says to Haku. He and the feminine male are inside of Naruto's living room thinking up a plan to stop Long and the Juubi.

"We'd have to get close to him for that, and as you know we can't even keep up with him," Haku says.

"Then, I'll just give him the Tsukiyomi!" Sasuke says this time.

"That could work..." Haku begins thinking about the Uchiha's strongest genjutsu move.

"Also... Why am I like this?" Sasuke asks, looking down at his arms being contained by chakra negation cuffs and being watched by ANBU guards. "I said I was sorry, and that I would come back peacefully!"

"Like we're gonna trust you..." A hawk faced ANBU says.

"People just can't let petty things go..." Sasuke says as he looks back at Haku. Said person just stares at him listlessly. "What?"

"You have no idea how hypocritical you sound." These are his words before he stands up and walks to the door. Before reaching the exit, he sees Naruto and Konan walking inside. "Naruto!"

"Hey guys... Any plans for Long?" Naruto asks them.

"All we've got is the Tsukiyomi, but there's a chance he might be able to overcome that," he says to him. "You're gonna have to face him, but that still leaves the Juubi. If they fight you at the same time you won't make it out."

"I know!" Naruto says in an annoyed tone. "That's why I need to talk to that skull."

"Skull?" Naruto points to Hakurei's skull resting on the coffee table, who has fallen asleep this whole time. "Oh, him."

Naruto walks over to the skull and shakes the table. "Wake up."

"Hubba... wha..." Hakurei wakes up feeling the table shake, and frowns in disgust seeing Naruto. "Oh, what do you want?"

"What do you know about Long?" he asks him, lifting the skull up to his level.

"I already told you about how I know Long and his specialties," Hakurei replies angrily. "That red haired princess told you the rest-"

"Yes, you've told me everything, except how he came back to life," Naruto asks him. Hakurei remains quiet, and Naruto glares at him with electricity in his eyes. "You're the one who brought him to life, aren't you?"

"I deny having anything to do with his resurrection," he says, turning his eyes to the left. "But if you want I can teach you a spell that each of you can use."

"Is it Ryuuseidan?" he asks him.

"No, besides that. It's a spell that can be used to power you up, momentarily," Hakurei says, his eyes flashing to reveal figures to explain the process. In the middle stands a single person, while beside him are two others. A magic circle appears underneath the middle person, and electricity draws towards him from his surroundings as the two perform harmonious chanting. "It takes three to do this, but it allows one person to absorb his personal element from his surroundings."

"So once again, I have to learn a technique that relies on other people?" Naruto asks out of depression.

"Naruto, you're not strong enough to not rely on others... No one is." Haku's words remind Naruto of what Konan told him a few minutes ago. Closing his eyes he sighs and places Hakurei down on the table.

"You're right, I'm not... Can you please teach us it?" Naruto says to the skull.

"NARUTO UZUMAKI!" A voice shouts out from above the village. Floating in the air is the great god dragon Long, dressed in his purple armor. He glares down at everyone below as his voice echoes in the background.

"Long!" Tsunade says from her office, having heard him just like everyone else.

"It's him," Naruto says, turning to Hakurei. "You're gonna have to give us the short version..."

"GIVE YOURSELF UP PEACEFULLY AND QUIETLY SO I CAN TEAR YOU TO PIECES! FAILURE TO COMPREHEND WILL FORCE MY HAND AND I WILL INSTEAD FLATTEN THIS ENTIRE VILLAGE WITH THE LARGEST RYUSEIDAN I HAVE EVER MADE!" Long's threats continues to roar over the village, scaring the civilians until their bowels have emptied, metaphorically. "THESE NEGOTIATIONS ARE OVER! YOU HAVE FIVE MINUTES!"

"Minutes... Minutes... Minutes... Fire... Minutes..." His echo howls throughout the village, surprising some people when they heard that fourth word.

"Fire? Huh, my echo's broke." Long figures as he lands in the middle of the village. Almost immediately he's attacked by ninjas, who use fire and earth base jutsus to smash him. Sad to say, by the time the smoke clears it reveals he's okay.

Meanwhile, inside the mansion, Sasuke and Haku are quickly drawing a magic circle underneath and surrounding Naruto with paint brushes. The girls watch him from above the stairs, feeling they might not be able to help. Hakurei then says, "Okay, stop," and they finish drawing. The magic circle has an outer ring with ancient words Hakurei instructed them to draw inside, and within the ring is a hexagon seal.

"Hurry up guys. We don't have much time!" Naruto says as he crosses his arms while waiting.

"Don't yell at me like that!" Sasuke snaps at the dragon.

"Now, all you have to do is repeat the following chant," Hakurei says as he prepares to tell them the chorus.

Before he could the building's roof tears open, revealing black clouds overhead. The girls back away from the opening, just as the head of the Juubi peers inside. His eyes dart to Naruto.

"It's the Juubi!" Sakura shouts.

"No shit, stupid!" Hakurei shouts at her.

"Great, a distraction!" Sasuke mumbles angrily. He turns to the ANBU, who have already gone into battle against the beast.

It smacks them away with a single swipe of his left palm, knocking them out. The ten tailed demon becomes surrounded in black fumes before it slips inside of the building, taking the form of Killer B. "There. It's me."

"What do you mean 'me'? I'm me!" he replies, baring his fangs at him.

"He wants the Kyubi chakra that still remains inside of you!" Haku says as he draws the Sea Lancer. "Remember, if he gets the rest of that you're done for!"

"Take this!" Sakura has leaped from higher ground towards the Juubi, punching him square in the face. His head jiggles a moment before he stands still. "Eh?"

"Don't get in the way!" The beast punches Sakura in the right boob, imprinting her into the wall. She coughs up blood as the vibration of the attack rattles her entire body.

"Sakura!" Naruto, Hinata and Samui cry out.

Sasuke manages to sneak to an Anbu and steal his keys, right before Haku charges at the Juubi. "Sea Lancer: V Slash!"

Haku slashes, releasing a pressurized torrent of water to leave a V mark on his body. The Juubi takes a few steps back from the attack, having felt it more than that punch. Making an angry scowl, he says, "I told you to stay out of the way!"

"Ikazuchi no Mai!" Samui comes down with her odachi to slash at him, but he grabs the sword by the hilt, making a successful block.

"Bakuensaiga!" Sasuke summons Decalogue and slams the Juubi with his base explosion technique. The attack manages to send the Juubi flying, and out from his body Manabu falls out of.

"Manabu!"

"Don't leave the circle!" Hakurei tells him, stopping Naruto from leaving. "If you step on the writing you'll have to draw it all over again!"

"Damn it!" Naruto clenches his right fist angrily.

"Naruto!" Hinata joins Samui and prepares to head for Naruto, while Sasuke and Haku struggle against the Juubi.

"Go help Manabu!" he tells them.

"Forget him! You two have a better goal to do!" Hakurei says to them. "You'll have to do the chanting instead!"

"What?" Hinata exclaims.

"It doesn't matter who does it, as long as two people do it," Hakurei says as he jerks his head to face the girls. They approach the skull, being careful not to step on the circle, and he says, "Okay, now here are the words..."

As he speaks, his words are rather incoherent and don't sound to be from any other language well known. Meanwhile the Juubi slashes with claws at Sasuke, leaving a mark on his body. Haku fires ice pikes, but they get knocked away by three of his many tails. They fly towards Haku and wrap around his right arm, left leg and neck, strangling him hard.

"Gilgamesh!" The Alchemist Sword comes up behind the Juubi and slams on his back, forcing him to turn back to see Manabu. "Let him go!"

"Manabu!" Naruto exclaims, glad that he's okay.

"Okay, now hurry up and repeat those chants until I say stop!" Hakurei says as he finishes telling Samui and Hinata the words.

They approach the outside of the ring from west to east, Samui west and Hinata east. They then begin to repeat the words Hakurei told them, giving a harmonious tone as they do.

"Torrent Slash!" Haku releases a powerful wave towards the Juubi, knocking him out of the home. He manages to stand back up like nothing happened, and summons 8 and a half of his tails. His eyes merge together into a whole eye, his original Sharigan/Samsara eye from years ago. He then growls fur over his body and gains claws on his left hand.

"I will become whole..." he says as he walks towards the two. Sasuke leaps at him with his blade, ready to slash him to pieces with Shikkoku Mikoto. The Juubi kicks him back and slashes at his chest, tearing off his clothes and leaving dark fumes on the wounds.

"Sea Lancer!" Haku fires a pressurized stream of water to cut the Juubi in half, but he's protected by a dark aura. Forming an ice blade Haku goes in for close combat, but gets clawed three times, twice on his body and once across his face. He collapses to the ground, grasping his left bleeding eye in pain while crying out.

The Juubi kicks Haku to the ground, while Sasuke fires an arrow at him. The Juubi deflects it with a tail and pierces through Sasuke's stomach with it. He spits up blood as the tail slithers out of his intestines, but continues to move towards him. 'This guy can't be that strong! Just because we haven't healed completely from that battle with Long doesn't mean we should be this helpless!'

As the Juubi nears him, Sasuke summons the tenth sword's blade form and merges Susanoo around him to attack. The beast grabs his sword arm and begins punching Sasuke in the stomach. As he does blood squirts out upon impact, draining him considerably. The Juubi then slashes his left arm, shocking the Uchiha when it falls off. Sasuke cries out in pain as blood shoots from his bone socket, and the Juubi kicks him to the ground.

'This is impossible! How could he make me bleed so easily while I was Susanoo?' Sasuke gripes in his head as he tries to pull himself together.

"Garbage," the Juubi says before turning to face Naruto's mansion. Manabu stands before the beast, his eyes glaring into the dark beast's. "You're next if you don't get out of the way."

He prepares to go, but stops when a powerful electric pulses throughout the mansion. This catches the attention of both Sasuke and Haku, who are both still bleeding from their painful injuries. All over Konoha and within the entire fire nation, appliances and objects relying on electricity automatically shut down, and clouds begin to gather over the nation. The center of the clouds is over Konohagakure.

Naruto can be seen walking outside of the mansion. His footsteps crush the ground underneath him, and blue electricity sparks throughout his form. His eyes glow a bright shade of blue as his hair momentarily change from red to gold for several seconds at a time. The Juubi then asks, "What's that?"

"That's Naruto Uzumaki, my apprentice." Manabu says with a grin, walking to the side to let him walk in. "He'll be the one to finish you off."

"Is that so?" The Juubi charges at Naruto, his dark aura flashing as he rushes towards him. Naruto blocks his first attack and kicks him away. He then looks down at his right arm, which he used to block, and sees blood on it.

"The Juubi has a powerful ability that made it feared amongst all the demons," Hakurei says from within the home, where Hinata and Samui have fainted. "Dark Luster: The black aura he releases allows the demon to harm whatever he attacks no matter how heavily armored the person is.

"This power-" as he speaks, Naruto draws Rave Cielo and immediately uses Dragonforce to fight him, "-threatened even Long, whose scales were as thick as a golem's hide."

Naruto kicks Juubi in the stomach and slashes at his stomach. Manabu shouts, "Naruto! Use this to even the odds!"

He then tosses the original Twilight Star over to him, and he grabs the blade with ease. It forms into Chromedread as he advances towards the Juubi. Naruto slashes at the beast, raking off blood. The Juubi strikes back by punching him square in the left cheek, causing him to bleed instantly.

The battle progresses as Naruto continues to hack and slash the ten tailed demon, at the same time losing a lot of blood. Every time he manages to miss the Juubi takes that chance to kick or punch him, and each hit causes him to bleed. Sasuke and Haku could only watch in suspense as both warriors continue to lose blood.

'This is pretty much even... I need to use Sage Mode to unlock my full power, but I can't if I keep moving...' Naruto thinks just before the Juubi punches him in the chest. He retaliates by slashing with the original's Chromedread, leaving another scar on the already bloody demon. As he stumbles backwards he notices some of the lighter scars are healing.

Naruto steps forward to stab at him, but the Juubi grabs Rave Cielo and punches him in the arm, causing him to cry out in pain and drop the sword. Naruto stumbles back once more, his body beginning to ache. 'Even with Dragonforce I'm losing.'

The Juubi comes in with a right jab, but Naruto blocks by slashing at his elbow pit with Shining Angelus. Pushing his arm down Naruto raises his right hand to block a left swipe, but his arm still bleeds from impact.

"How is Naruto able to take such pain? It's inhuman," Haku questions as he watches the fight.

"That's because he's more than human," Sasuke tells him.

The Juubi raises both his arms to free himself, before slashing at Naruto's right arm and clawing off blood, skin and clothes. Naruto slides along the ground in pain, feeling his wounds take over.

"Now I will become me again," the beast says as he walks over to Naruto.

A ball of fire hits the beast in the back before exploding, drawing his attention away. He turns around to see who would get in his way, only to see a lovely woman with red hair approaching them. Manabu, knowing this woman personally, shouts in shock, "AMELIA?"

"Hello, Manabu," she says, a small blush on her face.

"Who's she?" Sasuke asks. Haku only shrugs.

While this is going on Naruto goes into his sage position, gathering nature energy from all around him. 'Got to hurry up!'

"What are you doing here?" Manabu asks her.

"Didn't you get my letter?" she asks him. He then thinks back, and remembers that letter she gave him before. "I'm here to visit you... Because once again you're in trouble."

"I don't do it on purpose!" he tells her.

"I'm still here you know!" The Juubi summons his nine tails and sends them after Manabu and Amelia. He grabs her and ducks, receiving a scar on his back.

"Manabu!"

"Don't get involved anymore!" The Juubi turns back around to face Naruto, who rises up to his feet. His eyes show Dragonforce and Sage Mode both active on him. Red energy erupts from his body in addition, and gives him the Kyuubi slits he always owns. Red, yellow and green energy combine together, resulting in golden energy that turns his hair into the same color and his eyes green.

"Break Genkai, Naruto Uzumaki." Naruto uses electricity to capture Rave Cielo and prepares for battle.

(Rising Your Power To Gold plays in the background)

"Give me back me!" The Juubi fires several of his tails at Naruto, who dodges at a quick speed unnoticeable by anyone, even Sasuke who tries to follow using the Sharingan. The Juubi tries to track Naruto down, but only catches glimpses of him in blurs.

Naruto comes up behind him in a jump, and rapidly kicks him from behind. After kicking off his back he forms Kuro Getsuga with both blades and begins rapidly slashing the Juubi at a speed not even Naruto himself could see clearly. His combo ends with Gilgamesh, where he engulfs the Juubi in a double explosion. Backing away, Naruto awaits for him to come out, and spots the beast for the most part unharmed.

"I will become whole!" The Juubi screams, rushing towards Naruto in a blind rage.

"Double Omega Cannon!" Naruto fires a Jyuken Gattai from both his weapons, razing the demon and consuming it in a powerful condensed stream of electricity.

"Naruto, we have to finish it once and for all!" Manabu says to him as he rushes into battle with Starlight Rave.

"Rave Cielo: Twilight Finallusion!" Naruto tosses the original Twilight Star to the side and dashes towards the demon.

"Ryuseiha!" Manabu charges his sword three times before he reaches the Juubi. "Prism Star Break!"

Their combined attacks tear into the Juubi, creating a light blue portal behind him. The beast reaches out its hands to them, before being absorbed through the dimensional distortion. Naruto and Manabu are shocked as well seeing that, since that's the first time something like this has ever happened.

The Juubi's body begins to break down into matter as it's absorbed into the blue dimension, which closes up afterwards. Naruto then says, "Wow, that was weird."

(Rising Your Power To Gold ends)

"That's never happened before," Manabu adds.

Naruto's eyes turn back to the village, where he senses Long's energy. "I'm going to stop Long once and for all. Can you look after everyone for me?"

"You're not going alone!" Manabu tells him.

"Already have!" Naruto dashes into town, disappearing as if he was an afterimage.

"Damn it..." Manabu prepares to go after him, ignoring the bleeding on his back. Amelia grabs him by the arms though. "Amelia! Let go!"

"Not until I treat that. If you leave it alone you'll get infected, and you'll never keep that promise you made me," she says, giving him a stern glare.

Blushing, Manabu looks away and says, "Fine. I'll help everyone else first."

"Bout time!" Sasuke complains. "Was bleeding to death for the most of three minutes, but thanks for finally noticing!"

"Quit your eternal bitching, you jerk!" Haku tells him.

"You're the jerk!" he replies, kneeing him in the left arm.

"YOU'RE THE JERK!" Haku punches him in the face.

"Hey, hey, stop!" Manabu shouts to them, breaking them up from their fight.

Elsewhere...

Kaimuto wanders throughout the white wasteland that he governs. He lies down on a soft meadow and looks into the fake sun up above. "I'm really bored."

That's when something appears out of nowhere before him, reforming into its original shape. Kaimuto's eyes widen in shock when he sees the Juubi in human form, even though he never knew about it. "What the hell?"

* * *

Manabu: It all ends next time. Naruto fights Long in a final throw out that will put everything to rest.

Julia: What was that attack that destroyed the Juubi?

Manabu: Apparently Prism Star Break is a dimensional attack that splits open a portal to draw in whatever is inside. It's strong enough to split open


	42. Rising Your Power To Gold Part 3

**_Naruto and The Water Princess_**

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the other stuff. Let's see... One Piece, Fairy Tail, Static and there was one more... Rave!

Insert Song: Rising Your Power To Gold by Norio Sakai

* * *

**_Chapter 41: Rising Your Power to Gold Part 3_**

* * *

"If he's not coming out then I'll just blow this place up!" Long shouts out of anger as he forms a Ryuseidan in one hand. "This dragon star bomb will end this entire village."

"Rairyu no Tsumeotoshi!(Lightning Dragon's Claw Drop)" Naruto comes in at blinding speed, kicking Long in the face. He gets flung to a building, leveling it without so much as a hassle. Naruto then uses Tenchi to dispel the Ryuseidan. "And by the way, it's called Shooting Star Bomb."

Long rises up from the debris without trouble, his eyes turning green as they glare at Naruto. "You... It's about time you showed up. Mei and I were getting the feeling you ditched us."

"Save it!" Naruto growls. He walks to the right in a half circle, and as he does he says, "You're an asshole, I've just killed that Juubi, so shove it!"

Naruto charges at Long, with Rave Cielo by his side. Long levitates above him, and lands to the sidelines next to what looks like Mei. Naruto notices her and his eyes widen for a moment, seeing she's been tied up and restricted. Long says, "Now, now, now, don't you wanna say something to her before you die?"

"No." Naruto's answer is blunt, short, and surprising.

"No? Aren't you fighting for her?" Long asks him.

"No, I'm fighting for myself," Naruto says, stomping over to him. "I'll never be able to overcome any goals if I give my life for others without accepting help. I'm not strong enough to not rely on others."

"So then you lose." Long immediately forms his purple knight armor around him.

Electricity forms by Naruto's mouth as he shouts, "Rairyu no Hoko," before firing a stream of condensed electricity.

"Suiryudaruma!(Water Dragon Ball)" As Naruto's attack travels, a dragon made of water rises out of Long's body and its head receives the roar attack. Its head reforms easily though, and travels towards Naruto.

"Tenchi!" Naruto slashes vertically at the water dragon, but it splits in half on its own. "What?"

The water dragon then comes back together, trapping Naruto inside a sphere of water. Long laughs, shouting, "How's that? You can't use your electric powers in water!"

'Ghost Slayer!' Naruto forms a Jyuken Gattai, using it to slash through the water dragon to free himself. He then lands on the ground and dashes off, using wind to increase his speed, and dry himself off.

"You can't run from me!" Long chases after Naruto using basic wind manipulation to fly, following after his tactic.

Their chase leads straight out of Konoha into the forest. By the time Naruto's halfway in, he's dried off, and begins to run on electricity. But at this point he notices Long catching up to him. 'My speed with these pants isn't going to last long.'

"Gokaryuha!(Hell Fire Dragon Wave)" Long opens his mouth and fires a blast of flames in the shape of a dragon at Naruto. Being just behind him doesn't leave much room to dodge or run away, but thanks to the velocity he's running at, the flames die out before they could reach.

"Time to end this!" Naruto mumbles just as he leaves the forest. He quickly turns around and digs into his back, drawing out the original Twilight Star. "Double Lunar Napalm!"

He slashes both of his swords at Long, releasing 24 sword beams of darkness that explode on his body. As smoke envelopes him, Naruto almost misses a pillar of smoke falling down to him. He dodges, and sees that it's his lance. But because of this distraction, he misses a Ryuseidan coming at him from the side. The bomb sends him far off, before he slices it up and takes the explosion.

"That attack gets so annoying," Naruto says as he forms a Rasengan.

"Hmph, hypocrite." Long fires a second Ryuseidan, forcing Naruto to block using his spiraling sphere. The collision causes an explosion, that leaves a crater behind. "At least mine can be shot."

From above Naruto leaps down at Long to slash him to pieces. He blocks using his lance, but Naruto takes this moment to stab him using a diamond sphere from the original Chromedread. "Gah!"

"Chance!" Naruto lands before Long and begins to wildly attack him. Each slash from his swords, that he sometimes combine together for a double strike, causes sparks to flash from his body. His armor falls apart as Naruto strikes it, eventually leaving openings to the main body. Long is also forced backwards with his strikes, finding it difficult to stand against him because of his strength.

Naruto slashes with the right sword, before repeating the action with the same blade and then the second. Doing this he's spun around, exposing his back to the dragon. "Hadouryu Ougi: Raidentsume!"

(Wave Dragon Secret Technique: Thunder and Lightning Claw)

Naruto jumps in the air, avoiding Long's lance. Naruto utilizes the wind to carry him farther, glaring down at the dragon. As he descends he spins, and a maelstrom of wind and lightning surrounds him before he makes a reverse axe kick to Long's face. His helmet shatters from the impact of the kick and blood shoots out from his eye sockets, nose and mouth before he's sent flying back into the forest covered in electricity. His impact strikes like lightning, leveling half of the forest.

Having landed, Naruto looks ahead at the damage he's caused; having leveled half a forest and set most of the rest on fire just in the beginning of the fight is a bit of overkill. Resting his sword arms on his wraps backwards, he says, "Nah, that can't be it. That talking lizard should still be around."

As if on cue the ground underneath him collapses, and jaws rise up around him from under his feet. Acting quick he jumps away at lightning speed, avoiding the jaws that could have taken his head off, and lands away enough to get a good look at it.

The jaws belong to a dragon head, which rises up from the ground to follow him. As he steps to the side he notices the rest of the dragon slithering out from the hole. The dragon glows brightly before changing into Long, who lands just before him a yard away.

Naruto tosses the original Twilight Star away, using his free left hand to send wind blades to his legs. This action doesn't harm him, but instead cuts off the pant legs, giving him freedom up to his knees. "About time you came out."

"I've never been more angry than I have now..." Long grumbles, his glowing red eyes darting at Naruto.

Naruto grins and rubs his nose with his left hand index finger, resting Rave Cielo on his shoulder. "So, now we get down to the real fight. The last dragon standing with be the winner."

Laughing, Long repeats his action, as if mocking the boy. "I find it rather hard to call you a dragon. If you had said the last warrior then I would have still laughed. If you were to have said the last lifeform, maybe I would have considered it. But in the end you speak as if this was a battle of winning or losing.

"It's of death..." Long says with a growl at the end, crossing his arms over his chest.

"What?" Naruto replies with an angry tone in his voice. He stops scratching his nose to asks, "Are you saying neither of us can live at the same time and one of us has to go?"

"THAT'S RIGHT!" Long transforms into his dragon form and flies at Naruto. Naruto pauses for a moment before grinning, dodging at the last second with his increased speed. Swinging his sword down, he stabs into one of his scales. "What?"

"Well, I agree!" Naruto cuts off the scale, grinning like a maniac during. Blood escapes the wound while Long cries out in pain. He then takes to the skies, dragging the golden haired ninja with him. "What are you doing?"

"I wonder half dragon... can you fight without air in your lungs?" Long continues to rise higher into the skies, until he reaches a high enough atmosphere for the area to turn dark blue. Naruto at this point begins to breath in quickly, as if his air has been compromised. "You may have the powers of a dragon, but you're still a human. You need oxygen to survive."

Naruto begins to gasp out for air, the need for such too great to ignore anymore. 'This is pathetic! I'm a sky dragon, so why can't I survive this long in the air?'

Without warning he releases his hold on the dragon, falling down to Earth. 'Air...returning...but still...falling...'

"Here's some insurance to make sure he stays dead. Ryuseidan!" Long swirls in the air, forming the dragon's special attack in mid air in between himself. The giant dragon star bomb descends towards Naruto, who is incapable of dodging at this point.

'Doesn't he know any other attacks? I've got over 50 techniques!' Naruto digs into his clothes to draw out his saucer, and a faint look appears on his face. "Shit! I left it home! I was in such a hurry to fight Long I forgot to get it!"

Looking back at the Ryuseidan, and down to the ground, he begins to think. 'Well, I could try that... Eh, it'll be fine.'

"Maagi Magico! Magiro Armi!" As he chants the spell, his armor materializes out of nowhere. Adorning his new form, he draws Rave Cielo and aims it to the ground. "I'll use Gilgamesh to soften the landing. It won't matter if I can't fly if I can do that!"

As he descends, his cape begins to unfurl. It splits in half and divides into four pieces, before they're suddenly converted into wings. "Eh?"

"Eh?" Long notices his wings sprout with shock.

"What's this?" Naruto looks back at his wings, noticing that he's finally stopped falling. 'Hey! I can fly now!'

"Damn you Hakurei, and your backfire spells!" The Ryuseidan continues towards Naruto, who remains floating in midair.

(Rising Your Power To Gold plays)

"Crap!" Naruto suddenly flies out of position, something he didn't know he could do. 'Huh. So I can move based on my thoughts.'

The Ryuseidan bombs the ground, leaving behind a crater the size of a baseball stadium. "Whoa. I wouldn't have survived that one."

"Once again you've brought out another trick. Are you really an opportunist?" Long grumbles as he darts his eyes at Naruto. Closing them he says, "To think the one human who could stand up to me is actually a member of my own race...All because of the shame my sister brought."

"Shut up! This is all your fault, not hers!" Naruto shouts at him. "Look, I don't know what rules you dragons have, but I do know one thing; you can't who you fall in love with. You should have accepted her no matter what instead of killing her!"

"Is that what you think?" Long questions him. "Dragons are taught at a young age that humans are seen as lesser beings who could never be our equal. The worse thing any demon class could do is fall in love with their food... My sister Julia was the prime example of a perfect dragon: powerful, prideful, and always kept humans in their place.

"But then one day I discovered she had fallen in love with a human and mated with him. I killed the human of course, but I also exposed her shame. She was killed by having her powers stripped and cursed to her human form...While she was gone I took it upon myself to become the leader of the dragons, and I did...I then realized I needed a queen to become to perfect king, so I searched out the most beautiful dragon woman; Mei.

"But she was in love with a human too!" He suddenly yells this out upon reaching the ending. "Even worse, the child of someone who was exiled for doing the same thing! I could have done the same to her since I was the dragon king at that point, but she was the perfect woman for me, so I couldn't do it. I went to kill the boy, but he ended up slaying me."

"Yeah, I know that part of the story... But why is it so bad to like humans?" Long's head tilts to the side hearing Naruto's question.

"That's something you don't need to know. I'm still going to kill you and marry the water princess!" Naruto prepares himself as Long flies down towards him.

He lifts his hand up before his face, and electricity sparks in his hand in the form of a ball. He gives a shout of, "Ryuseidan," before firing it at Long.

"Ha! You call that a dragon star bomb?" Long says in a taunting tone.

"Not really." Naruto's attack strikes Long in the eye, causing him to lose track of Naruto for the moment. "But it can do that."

Naruto flies high up into the skies, his blade Rave Cielo shining brightly. "Now to finish you off with an attack I just thought up on the spot... Although since all of my attacks were thought up on the spot, I guess this won't seem different to me."

"What?" Long looks up into the skies to see Naruto. He growls as he flies towards him, his body straightening out.

"Nijiboshi no Kenjutsu!" Naruto rises higher up into the sky, his blade pointed up as lightning sparks from its edges. The sides of his wings release a golden light as it passes through the wind. Long opens his mouth and prepares a fire attack. Before he could even get a chance to charge it up, Naruto comes soaring down at him like a speeding bullet, spinning in a spiraling position at a terrific velocity that would make Sonic proud. Covered in lightning, he shouts, "Ryusei no Bakurai Giri!"

Naruto pierces into Long's mouth, drilling through his inner muscles without so much as a struggle. He explodes out the other end, covered in saliva and blood. "Goodbye, Daijinryu."

(Rising Your Power To Gold ends)

As he speaks those words, Long is covered in a lightning explosion. The entire sky is covered by the lightning of the explosion, overshadowing Naruto and even the clouds for about five seconds. It also knocks Naruto off his balance, and he begins to descends at a fast, unstoppable pace. As he falls though he doesn't look worried at all.

Before he could hit the ground, an arm reaches out and grabs him. Naruto raises his head to see his rescuer, and as his armor and golden energy vanish away he sees that it's Sasuke with Susanoo. "Still getting into trouble?"

"About time you guys showed up! Falling to my death and you finally show up!" Naruto shouts at him with a grin. As Sasuke lets Naruto down, Haku comes up behind him and smacks him in the back of the head.

"You reckless bastard," Haku says to him.

"We're here too," Manabu says as he and Amelia step from behind the giant spirit with Mei in his arms. "You did it."

"Mei!" Naruto immediately runs to Mei, taking her in his arms from Manabu. Naruto lays her down and begins to lightly tap her face. "Mei? Mei, wake up!"

Mei begins to slowly open her eyes, looking up at her beloved. "Naruto...Naruto!"

"Hey," he says before she reaches up to hug him.

"I'm so glad you're okay..." she mumbles in his shoulder. "I'm sorry for putting you through all this."

"Mei, it's okay. You don't have to apologize to me," he says to her. As he does he looks back behind himself, to see an object hit the ground just close by.

The object rises up from the crater, revealing itself to be Long. His golden garbs trashed, and his mouth bloody coloring his bottom jaw dark red, he continues to glare at them. "Now would be a good time to have sake."

"Long!" Haku and Sasuke draw their weapons to face the dragon king, despite their injuries. Naruto, with Mei in his hands, walks towards the dragon.

"Rainbow Star Sword Technique Dragon Star Exploding Lightning Slash... Can't say I saw it coming," Long says with chuckles accompanying his words. "But as you can see I'm still standing. I've got a few more tricks up my sleeve for yo-" He looks down at his left arm, which has been rendered immobile. "...Okay, not this one, but I can still fight! I can still take Mei for myself!"

Naruto stops before the king, and to Mei he says, "Go and apologize to him."

"What?" she questions him.

"What?" Haku and Sasuke say as well.

"What?" Long adds in as well.

"Long wouldn't have gone through all this trouble if you hadn't led him on. Even in his final moments he wants to be with you, so he must have some form of feelings for you. Apologize for toying with him and give him peace." Naruto's orders ring through Mei's head, along with everyone else'.

While the ice and fire duo couldn't believe he would say such a thing, Manabu sighs and throws his hands up in a shrug. Amelia tilts her head to the side in confusion. Mei then shouts, "YOU MUST BE OUT OF YOUR MIND IF YOU THINK-"

"Do it!" he says in a stern tone of voice.

"Yes dear," she suddenly replies, leaving his arms to walk to Long.

'Did he just coerced her into doing something?' Haku and Sasuke think in unison.

"Long, I'm sorry but I can't... Actually, I'm not sorry," Mei begins. "I may have led you astray by promising you something I wasn't going to give, but you killed all those people! I may not have had an opinion towards you, but I never would have thought you'd be so horrible as to kill all those people! My only reasons for apologizing are because it's partly my fault for being a spoiled brat, and because Naruto asked me to."

"I did all that stuff for you! I wanted you to become my woman because of how you were! Only a powerful man can stand to control a beautiful wild card like you!" Long growls back. He then turns his eyes to Naruto, and gasps realizing something. With a scowl he says, "But, whatever. I can't do anything about it now."

"Eh?" Mei exclaims.

"You're giving up now?" Naruto asks him.

"That's a good thing!" Sasuke shouts at him.

"I wouldn't be able to get your obedience the way he does..." Long takes a moment of silence to glare at Naruto. "You may be part human, and be a product of my sister's diving moment of weakness, but anyone capable of making the water princess do something she would never do herself...You're really something, aren't you?"

"Damn right!" Naruto tells him.

"I leave her in your hands. I still think humans are scum, and always will, but at least I wasn't killed by some no name that showed up out of nowhere..." As he says this, his body begins to shrivel up. Sparks of electricity courses through his body as he slowly turns into a dried up mummy husk. "I'll be waiting for you in the afterlife."

"You better not come back, or I'll beat you up again!" Naruto tells him as Long turns to dust. With Long gone he breaths a sigh of relief. "So, it's finally over, huh?"

"Yeah. He's finally out of our lives," Mei says as she hugs Naruto. The red head collapses into her arms tired. "Naruto!"

"I'm okay... just tired..." he tells her, closing his eyes as he rests. "I'm taking a nap now."

"Oh no you're not!" Sasuke says to him, grabbing Naruto by the shoulder. But by then he's already on a snooze cruise. "Damn it! I'm not dragging his ass back to Konoha!"

"Then I'll do it," Mei says, lifting the boy in her arms. "Sleep well Naruto..."

That Night...

Naruto opens his eyes, looking up at the ceiling to see he's back in his room. "Huh? I'm back?"

"That's right." He looks off to the side to see Mei sitting there. "Good evening Naruto."

"Mei... What are you doing here?" he asks her. "Shouldn't you be back in Kiri now that all this is over?"

"I've made a decision..." she says, helping him side up. "You were right; I am a horrible person. I made you marry me just so I could be with Eiji. I never cared about your personal feelings whatsoever. I want to make things up to you; I want to hold off the wedding."

"Eh?" he exclaims.

"In the 9 and a half years we've been engaged, I noticed that I hardly got to know you more than I should have. I want to marry you, no one else..." she says, giving Naruto a hug. "I'll let you marry those other girls, and I'll personally live here with you to get to know you more."

Naruto hugs her back after listening to her. "Okay. I'll do it..." But that's when he realizes something. "Wait. Who's going to take over as the Mizukage?"

"Haku." Naruto pulls her away so they're face to face, blinking twice with question. "I sworn him in as Mizukage while you were asleep."

"Eh? He's a kage before me?" Naruto says in shock.

"Here, I'll distract you from that," she says before kissing him on the lips, a kiss he replies with the best of his abilities. After they part a small blush rises on her lips. "Wow... Getting better."

"Yeah, thanks. Would you like to go sleep now?" he asks her. Staring into her eyes he could see a slight glint in them. "What?"

"Actually, there's something else I want from you." She then pushes herself onto his lips, kissing him fiercely enough to get a moan out of him. Mei lowers herself and Naruto further down on the bed, whispering in his ears, "The girls are asleep, so they can't disturb us."

"You want _that_? Now?" he asks, making sure he's got things right.

"Yes. I want sex, with you. I know you had sex with the others, and now you can take my pussy for yourself," she says with a seductive smile. She gives him another kiss, slipping her tongue in this time.

"Mei-hwamph!" As she french kisses him he tries to speak, but couldn't make anything coherent out. As they kiss eachother, she uses her acid powers to melt a line down his shirt, exposign his broad and muscular chest. She then does the same to her dress, letting it fall down and expose her beautiful naked body to the boy she loves. "I'll treat you nicely..."

"We all will!" The door bursts open to reveal Samui, Sakura and Hinata walking in, surprising the couple.

"What the? I thought you guys were asleep!" Naruto says to them.

"Turns out we were all faking so we could sleep with you," Sakura says to him.

"I wasn't planning on sleeping until we were done," Samui says, holding up a magazine filled with erotic positions.

Mei turns around to face the girls, giving her that familiar death smile. "If you interrupt my special time with Naruto ONE MORE TIME-!"

"Mei, no killer intent," Naruto tells her.

"Yes, Naruto," she says immediately, dropping her smile for a real one.

'He's got her under his control and he doesn't even realize it!' Sakura thinks in shock.

"Why don't we all make love to Naruto?" Hinata suggests to everyone. "It'll be fun with all five of us together! And I won't need protection because I'm pregnant."

"EH?" Naruto practically screams out in surprise.

"I am too," Samui adds, blushing as she places a hand on her stomach. "I wouldn't be surprise if I had two or three babies but I'll be fine with one."

Naruto didn't hear that last part; the moment he realized Samui was pregnant he froze. Mei grabs him by the shoulder and uses her acid power to burn his cheek with a finger poke. "OW! Hey!"

"Don't fall asleep. I want you awake when I make love to you," Mei says with a smile that makes her look absolutely sexy.

Elsewhere...

"Rising Ultimate Crush!" Kaimuto punches the Juubi twice, sending him crashing into the ground with two burning marks on his body. "C'mon! I've got a lot of pent up aggression being stuck here alone I can take out on you!"

* * *

Kenshin: Is it over?

Julia: Next chapter is the last lemon, and after Hakurei's death and a timeskip, then it's over. In other words, it all ends next chapter.

Yusei: Don't miss the final chapter of Water Princess: Reach For The Stars... We're still working on the title.


	43. Reach For Tomorrow!

**_Naruto and The Water Princess_**

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the other stuff. Let's see... One Piece, Fairy Tail, Static and there was one more... Rave!

Manabu: Enjoy the finale everyone.

* * *

Omake-

"Then so be it!" Long roars as he releases his energy, causing all around him to spread apart. The winds howl, and lightning strikes.

"Sensors! What can you tell us about his chakra level?" a ninja asks a sensor type.

After scanning his energy for a while the guy stands up and screams, "IT'S OVER EIGHT MILLION!"

"WHAT, EIGHT MILLION? There's nothing on the planet with that much power!" he replies.

"He's not wrong though. The real total is, 12 million," Long says to correct them.

"No... You're lying!" the ninja says.

"Am I? Am I really?" Long raises his hand up to the sky, and half of the village is leveled by pure power.

Naruto approaches from afar, avoiding the debris in the way. 'Huh... Isn't mine 13 million?'

* * *

**_Final Chapter: Reach For Tomorrow  
_**

* * *

"Come here, stud," Mei says as she begins kissing Naruto hard on his lips. Naruto replies by kissing her with all of his experience piling up. She moans softly into the kiss, slipping her tongue in to rummage his insides.

"I really want some of that now," Sakura says as she bites down on her fingers.

"Not yet. Let them have their time first, then he's mine," Samui speaks as she licks her lips.

Naruto moves off of her lips to tackle her fine breasts. He notices they aren't near Samui's, or even Hinata's girth, but they're still big enough to overshadow Sakura's. He begins to lick and suck on the nipple, making the others see him as a sort of baby, which incidentally turns them on. Naruto's hands then drift down to her croft, rubbing her trim red carpet. "Oh, Naruto... Shock me again!"

"Huh?" he asks, lifting his head from her soaked nipple.

"Please, just do it!" she begs him. Shrugging, he bites down onto her other nipple, sending electricity through her breasts. He gets a little too into it and increases the voltage, causing her to cry out loudly.

Realizing what he did he looks into her eyes and says, "Oh my god! Are you okay?"

She falls back onto the bed, breathing hard from that last orgasm she just had. Looking up into his eyes with wide eyes and a blush, she says, "That was amazing... I love this feeling of you owning power over me!"

"Eh?" Mei wraps her legs around his waste, clucking her heels together and rubbing his sides with the fishnet stockings on her legs. She rubs her dripping wet cunt over his private area, enticing the dragon slayer.

"Please! Give it to me! I've waited so long to have you inside me!" she tells him, giving the boy the most seductive look she could make. Naruto quickly unzips his penis free, letting it slap her wet entrance. She makes a squeal feeling his rod touch her, excited at finally doing this with him.

Naruto positions himself properly, and enters her vagina. She cringes in pain feeling him break right through her hymen, causing her to bleed. Unconsciously she activates her powers, and his penis burns slightly. He shouts, "AH!"

"Oh god, I'm sorry!" she says, shocked that she actually did something like that to him. "What's wrong with me? I should be better than that!"

"Don't worry, I think the burning stopped," he says, feeling her insides have lost their acidic touch.

"Do you need medic?" Sakura asks him, raising her right hand's index finger. "I can make a quick heal through your anus."

Cringing at that thought, Naruto says, "No, we're cool," and ignores his burns.

"Really? You're okay?" Mei asks him out of concern. To answer her he begins to pump into her body, causing her to moan. She cries out in pleasure as Naruto starts getting into it more, searching out her favorite spots.

Mei's legs increase their grip and her hips begin to buck in response. She moans, thinking, 'To think I could have been doing this with him all this time! It's so heavenly, much better than kissing!'

"Mei looks so domestic underneath Naruto," Hinata says with a pervy grin.

"My guess is she's one of those tsunderes who turns completely submissive to the right guy," Samui says, adding in her own two cents.

"Oh Naruto!" she shouts out, surprising Samui since she thought she would call out Eiji. It would seem she really did change. "I can-I can feel it! I'm coming!"

"Me too!" Naruto gives one last push inside of her, and she reaches up to hug him with one last scream. As they reach their orgasms, his sperm enters her womb and her juices pour down his shaft.

Both lay side by side on the bed, still connected and in eachother's arms. Panting, Mei looks into his eyes and says, "That was amazing, Naruto. It really was worth saving my first time with you."

"R-Really? You never even masturbated?" he asks her. She nods in response, giving an embarrassed flush to the ninja's face. Now that he thinks about it, as long as she can make acid pour from any part of her body no one would even try to rape her.

"Well Mei-san I hope you had fun, because now it's my turn!" Sakura says as she takes off her clothes.

"No way, it's mine!" Hinata says sternly.

"Eh?" Naruto mumbles. "I don't think I have the energy..."

"Naruto, can't you just make shadow clones?" Mei asks him.

"...Oh yeah." With that info in mind Naruto makes three clones, all of which the girls pounce on.

Downstairs Manabu and Amelia are enjoying a romantic dinner, which is occasionally interrupted by the noise. Manabu sighs, saying, "I'm sorry if this isn't the kind of evening you were hoping for."

"It's okay. We hardly ever got to spend time together," Amelia replies. She leans forward and kisses him on the lips, leaving him blushing redder than her hair. "Besides, nothing could ruin the time I get to spend with you... Thank you, for all those times you've saved me."

"Please, it was only three," he says to her. "It's nothing."

Amelia takes his hand and looks into his eyes, with love in her eyes. "You saved me from a pervert who made me a monster, that man who wanted to turn me into a hybrid human bat, and that dragon who wanted to mate with me to create a dragon as powerful as Yusei... Those aren't just nothing, especially since we were enemies when we first met."

"Like I said, it's nothing. I'd do it for any of my friends, especially you." Manabu leans forward to kiss Amelia this time, and they stay like that for a while before resuming dinner.

Elsewhere another person is busy talking to a woman now. Sasuke now stands before his friend Tenten, with a concern look on his face. "Tenten, I'm sorry. I'm sorry for acting like an idiot. I'm sorry for betraying the village and hurting you in anyway. I won't act out of any selfish vengeful behavior I may get again... Can you forgive me?"

Tenten remains quiet, along with the Anbu, Lee and Neji. She walks towards him and punches him in the face. He complains and is about to say something, but receives a hug for his trouble. "Of course."

Around Midnight...

Naruto opens his eyes, looking up to the ceiling to see that it's still dark out. He's actually surprise he has the energy to wake up at this time. 'After fighting Long and pleasuring 4 women I thought I'd stay out until tomorrow...'

Finding himself unable to go back to sleep, he snuggles out of the hold Mei and Hinata have on his arms and slips out of bed. Free, he heads down the stairs while flexing his body. He winces in pain realizing his muscles are still sore. Down by the table in the living room he sees Hakurei's skull resting. "Still up?"

"Yeah. I'm surprised you're up though," Naruto says as he looks at the talking head.

"Well, I gotta be. I can't do this when I'm asleep!" Hakurei quickly begins chanting a couple of words, and a fierce wind collects around Naruto, paralyzing him. Hakurei laughs, saying, "I can't believe I got an opening this good!"

"What...are you...up to?" Naruto shouts at him, struggling to since his mouth is stunned also.

"I need a new body to move in because you and those other three destroyed mine, so I'm taking yours!" Hakurei's skull begins floating over to Naruto. "I didn't think I'd get this chance because you were around others, and you would have been too strong to overcome this. But your battle with Long was just the kind of opening I've been looking for! Now you're too weak to stop me, and no one around can save you in time!"

"You!" Hakurei laughs as he travels towards the reluctant Naruto.

"Don't worry! I'll be sure to take good care of your girlfriends in your place! The Water Princess is actually quite nice to look at!" Hakurei extends his spine towards Naruto, aiming for his mouth and down his throat.

Before he could reach down there, Naruto begins coughing violently. After a few coughs he hacks up saliva, and begins gagging. Out from his mouth a black crow wiggles out, before Naruto spits the thing completely out of his throat.

"Disgusting, you gotta chew your food," Hakurei says to him as he retracts his spine. He looks at the black crow, and notices something. "Wait, something's wrong... That's-"

"That's the crow Itachi shoved down my throat!" Naruto says.

The crow flies up to his shoulder and flashes its left eye, revealing a green Sharingan. Looking at the Sharingan, Hakurei freezes. "W-What?"

"What the hell?" Naruto exclaims.

The crow flies off of his body before it begins to mutate, transforming into a humanoid form. It has a feminine form, long black hair, brown skin, and chocolate eyes. She also has a crimson dress. Hakurei's eyes widen in shock seeing her. "Y-You! But how?"

"There's no point in me explaining that to you Hakurei," she says before grabbing his face. She then closes her right eye as the left one releases a magic circle that wraps around him. Hakurei's skull begins to crumble away, turning into dust. "Goodbye."

The woman turns her attention to Naruto, who manages to crawl back into a position to fight her if needed. "Alright, what's going on? Why were you in my throat?"

"Stomach," she says, correcting him.

"Whatever! What was Itachi thinking putting you inside me?" he shouts.

"Keep your voice down. I only want to let you know about this." She yanks her hand out to him. "But first, I would like something to eat... Maybe something made of ice."

"Ice?" The lady takes his hand and drags him to the fridge. She immediately begins searching for the coldest item inside, and finds a shish kabob ice-cream bar. She devours the balls of ice cream, finding the sea salt ice cream especially delicious. "I guess you like ice cream."

"It's a known fact that dragons are naturally weak to ice, but at the same time it's extremely delicious," she says while eating the cookies and cream ball.

"They do? Aw man! I would have had Haku fight Long then!" Naruto complains.

"I saw the fight. Wouldn't have worked against him... He wasn't the great god dragon for nothing," she says to him.

"Wait, how do you know all of this? Who are you?" he asks the woman.

"I am Nico Julia, the ancestor who was Eiji's mother," she tells him.

His eyes go wide, and he shouts, "WHA-"

She clasps his mouth shut. "What did I say?"

"Sorry," he mumbles in her mouth.

"Anyway, Long told you that I was killed by being cursed as a human, right? Well, what he really meant was I was dead to all dragons by being cursed into a human form. Unable to use my true powers, I couldn't do anything but rely on my spells to live. I couldn't even be with Eiji because they would find out where he is, and I would be unable to protect him..." she says, explaining the situation in a short moment to him. "When I heard Eiji had killed Long, I felt it was for the best. Eiji was better off living a life without fighting... But that's when Hakurei stepped in."

"Hakurei?" Naruto repeats.

"He had been defeated by Long before for Mei, but he couldn't let that loss go. So he used his magic to bring back Long, and used him to reestablish control... Despite everything we went through, it was still my fault for making Long the way he was, and I couldn't hate my little brother..." Julia looks away with a sad sigh escaping her lips. "So I freed him from the skeleton king's control. My magic was still at a level to overcome his.

"Anyway, that's when Hakurei assembled the Rokumajuu to take Long out, and even summoned the Satan of Darkness the Juubi to fight him, who also broke free of his control. The Juubi wanted to control the human realm, and Long wanted to be entertained, so naturally they found eachother." Julia's explanation gives a new shine to his dreams; that's why Hakurei sent those images to him so he could get them to fight eachother. "I was also responsible for Mei regaining her memories."

"Eh? Really? Why?"

"Because Mei was the reason he became like this. He was obsess with her the moment he met the woman, and believed women only loved men with power...Might have gotten that from me...Anyway, when Mei was reincarnated she had no memories of her past, so I restored them. I wanted her to realize her mistake and apologize for driving him mad... Sadly, she didn't even remember meeting him when they were younger." Julia's words bring another sense of understanding to Naruto. "I'm sorry. I can tell I put you through a lot."

"It's okay. I guess I could have walked away from it all before it got like this... I still don't regret being with Mei..." he tells her, smiling as he thinks of his soon to be wife. "But wait, why were you in Itachi's genjutsu thing?"

Julia finishes eating the icecream kabob in time to answer. "I met him while spying on Akatsuki. I collaborated with him to find more secrets of Akatsuki, in exchange for help in protecting his little brother. I became a part of his crows and entered your body so I could come out when you fought Hakurei and use a spell to paralyze him... I didn't need to though when you fought him the first time because you and those other three did so well. He wanted me to keep his brother away from Hakurei and I wanted to protect you from my own selfish choice, so this was for the best."

"I guess..." With everything clear, Naruto gives a heated sigh. Julia heads for the front door, still relishing from the ice cream she ate. "Wait, where are you going?"

"Just because you defeated Long doesn't mean there aren't other dragons around. I want to see if there's a way to end the fighting between your soon to be younger generation," Julia says as she reaches the door. She then opens it, turns around to say, "Goodbye Naruto," and leaves.

"...Bye..." Naruto says when she does leave, giving out a heavy sigh. "Well, at least she's free now..."

Two Years Later...

"Oh yes! Naruto, yes! Oooh!" A woman could be heard moaning in the main office of the Hokage. Shizune peeks inside and watches Naruto making love to Mei while she wears messy attire. Her juices continues to spill on the desk, dripping on the records.

'Naruto, you know Tsunade-sama has work to do... Still, this is so hot...' Shizune thinks as she watches Naruto go to town on his woman.

"I'm cumming!" Mei cries out, grabbing Naruto and wrapping her arms around his back. On her left hand's middle finger rests a diamond engagement ring, and a matching male ring rests around Naruto's fingers.

Her juices continue to pour out of her body, mixing in with his sperm. Mei opens her eyes after relishing in her orgasm, and says, "That was amazing... The best one yet..."

"Thanks," he says to her. As they stare at one another, Mei takes the time to notice his changes from 2 years ago: he still has red hair but combed back to give it this apparently 80s style look to it, his muscle tone has evened out, he's shaved all the hair that isn't on his hair or crotch, his leg muscles are much sturdier than before, and he now wears clothes to give his arms and legs more freedom. Instead of having to wear his orange jumpsuit anymore, he wears his blue electric outfit with shorts in place of pants.

Mei on the other hand hasn't changed much in two years. Her attire, hair, even her age all look similar to what they were back then. Of course she would never age anymore being a dragon, but still it's something to take note of.

Naruto pulls out of Mei, much to her reluctance, and sits in his chair, his head resting by the Hokage hat situated on the back. "Thanks for the distraction, but now it's back to work."

"Aw..." Mei says as she adjusts her clothes to look proper. "I was hoping to receive more of your essence... A little more and we could have our second child..."

"Nope! It's hard enough being the Hokage's personal assistant for this stuff, and a father to five babies with dragon blood in them. I don't need you becoming pregnant again before I can get everything situated," Naruto says to her as he begins to sign papers. "Why did that old hag hire me for this?"

"I heard she did it just to piss you off," Mei says with a chuckle.

"Maybe... I'll be done with this soon. Tell Samui I'll be back in two hours," he says to her.

"Okay," she says before walking off, shaking her behind as much as she could to entice him. Seeing it didn't work, she sighs in defeat.

After two hours have passed, Naruto leaves his office and heads straight for home, aboard his E.M. saucer. He reaches the front door and enters inside, and sees Samui breastfeeding her baby. The child's a blond haired girl with light blue eyes like her mother. Her skin is darker like Naruto's though. She raises her head to see her husband Naruto, smiling before saying, "Good afternoon, Naruto."

"Hey Samui. How are the babies?" he asks her. Samui jesters to the babies sleeping in the carriers by her side.

Naruto checks out the kids. The first one nearest Samui is an indigo haired little boy. He's sleeping so his eyes are closed, but he has clear eyes like Hinata's. The same goes for the next boy beside him, both identical twins from the same mom. The next child is a red haired girl with green eyes, Sakura's daughter, and the last red headed, blue eyed child is the son of Naruto and Mei.

It's rather complicated how the kids were born; shortly after the battle with Long, about a month later, Naruto got married to Sakura, Hinata and Samui. They all knew Naruto enough for him to be okay with it, so Mei wasn't totally upset, and by the time he proposed to her two weeks after she was so happy she fell to tears. Although those tears melted the entire restaurant they were in, she still accepted. They got married shortly after, since she opposed a big wedding, but stayed on service in being a ninja because he already took time off before. After a few days Samui, Hinata and Mei were confirmed pregnant, but Sakura wasn't, which deeply worried her. After they shared a private day together, it's then revealed she became pregnant. Samui gave birth first and then Hinata, followed by Sakura and Mei.

"Naruto, don't get too close. You'll wake them up," Samui says to him.

"Why would they? Can't they tell they're safe?" Naruto asks her as he places a hand onto Mei's child. He begins to fidget before slowly crying out. 'Crap!' "Okay, okay, okay! Let's not go too far!"

Naruto picks up the little boy and begins to rock him back and forth to calm him down. Whispering softly he says, "Calm down little Eiji..."

"You're lucky Mei taught you how to calm down startled babies," Samui says as she continues to feed her baby Mai.

"Hey, give me some credit here!" he snaps at her, well not really. She doesn't take his snapping seriously, because he would never really get angry at his wives, most especially Samui. "So, have you heard from Manabu?"

"Yeah, he's still out there with Amelia in Kiri," she tells him. "It was a really beautiful ceremony."

"Yeah, I know... He seems much happier being with her after so long," Naruto adds as he notices he's calmed down his child. He lays him next to Sakura's daughter Akane while his eyes go to Hikawa and Hikaru. "I'm glad things turned out this way."

Naruto walks to the window and looks out to see the green landscape, and breathes a contempt sigh of relief. 'Yusei, Ero-Sennin, and Itachi... Thanks I guess.'

"Hey Naruto!" Sasuke shouts as he opens the door. With him are Tenten and Ino.

Unfortunately his shout awakens the other three babies, who proceed to crying. Sasuke says, "Uh oh."

"LOOK WHAT YOU DID, TEME!" Naruto shouts at him. Tenten gives a sigh and throws her hands up with a shrug.

Elsewhere...

"Omega Arts!" Manabu fires an ice bullet at a tree, freezing half of it. Mizukage Haku and Manabu's wife Amelia watch with interest.

"Manabu, do you always have to say the name of the weapon when you use it?" Amelia asks him before Starlight Rave returns to normal.

"Yeah. It's like a thing," he says with a shrug. She sighs and turns towards the Mizukage. "Anyway, is this enough?"

"Yeah. This oughta flush out that ice eater whoever it is," Haku says as he turns towards the other trees which have also been frozen. "I'm glad there were no casualties, no one even got hurt during these attacks, but no one's gonna go around eating my well made ice home!"

Manabu and Amelia sweat drop. "That's what this is about?"

"Yes ma'am," Haku says as he heads back home.

Amelia takes Manabu's hand and heads back towards the village with him. "Ready to go back to our honeymoon?"

"Sure. Let's hope Konan isn't around," he says before stepping over an ice flower made by Haku's power.

His eyes look up into the sky as he makes a carefree smile. 'These are great days. I don't care how boring things are; I wouldn't trade this life for anything.' These are his last thoughts before heading to the hotel with Amelia.

This may not be the end of his adventures, but Naruto would never have to deal with stuff from Mei's past ever again. She would never be selfish and make others fear her for as long as he says so. Even though his current position may suck, he can still leave the village and go on missions; just another step to becoming Hokage.

* * *

Kenshin: IT'S OVER!

Yusei: YEAH! (opens bottle of wine) Here you go.

Ivir: Thank you, Yusei.

Julia: It took so much longer than it should have.

Magellan: That's cause each chapter was over 4000 words. Should have stayed at 2000 and over. That way more chapters can come out sooner. It's like with I Am Your Slave.

Kenshin: So, what's next? (everyone turns to Manabu)

Manabu: Well, there is this guy who keeps pestering for a Den-O x to-Love Ru crossover. Should we do it?

Kenshin: Nah, let's ignore him.

Ester: I say we do it.

Kenshin: EH?

Julia: We've already gotten the first chapter down. Let's start it.

Manabu: Already done it. We'll see you all next time in Awaken the Hero: Agito and Kuuga, another Naruto project.


End file.
